Secrets
by Crystaline Dreams
Summary: There's always those things that you'll keep to yourself, those things you'll never say. But what if everyone knows something and those secrets come back to haunt you? After stars, slight yuri content.
1. A Prologue

**A/N:**** Yeah, I haven't finished my other one yet but this one just came to me and I have to get it out of my head. Maybe then I can finish the last chapter on "If you think you know, you're wrong." Well, I still own nothing, so if you sue, you won't get anything… Unless you want a cat that thinks she's a dog. It's kinda funny to tell the truth, throw a hair band and she'll bring it back…**

* * *

"Hey guys! What's going on? I thought we were supposed to meet at Rei's," I questioned with my usual bubbly personality.

"Her grandpa is sick. She said he wanted some quiet so he could sleep. She'll be by in a little while," Ami answered without looking up from her book. Minako and Makoto were eyeballing the hot college guys that came in right behind me. I rolled my eyes slightly as I climbed into the booth.

After a few minutes one of the waitresses came over to take our orders. Makoto got a burger and fries, Ami got a sandwich - which caused Makoto and Minako to roll their eyes. Minako just got fries, then the waitress turned to me.

"And what for you, Usagi?" she asked.

"Um, nothing thanks," I said. She nodded and walked away. I didn't notice the girls giving me funny looks and probably wouldn't have if someone hadn't interrupted my thoughts.

"Wow, Usagi actually turned down food! Are you feeling okay?" Rei asked, sitting down next to Ami, across from me.

"I'm just not hungry right now, I ate before I came here."

"Oh, I get it. You spent all your money on manga and video games again," Minako said with a laugh. _If it'll shut them up…_

After that, the conversation switched over to the usual. Talk about school and finals, since we hadn't come across any new enemies since Galaxia, then the latest movies. About an hour later it finally went to guys…_damn. Can't go one meeting without talking about guys. Maybe I can get out of this early, play sick or something…_

"Usagi? Are you here?" I heard Rei ask. I looked up and noticed all the girls were watching me again. I just nodded, nervous about what I missed.

"Good. Lets try that again," Rei said. "Ami asked you how Mamoru was doing in America." _Shit._

"He's doing good. He has finals coming up too so he's been busy," I said. _Wow, I'm getting better at this. I guess after making it all up for so long, it just comes naturally._

"Are you sure you're okay?" Minako asked after resting a hand on my shoulder. Guess I spaced out again.

"Yeah, why?" I asked.

"You just seem out of it today. You keep spacing out, and you didn't try for any of our food," Makoto answered before Minako could say anything.

"I did tell you I wasn't hungry," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"No, I still think you don't have any money on you and that's why you didn't order anything," Minako stated. I just rolled my eyes and leaned over so I could pull my wallet out of my back pocket. I opened it up for Minako to see the $30 I had.

"No, I have money, I'm just not hungry, okay?" I snapped without meaning to. They all noticed.

"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today," Minako mumbled before returning to her remaining (and now cold) French fries.

"I heard that, just so you know. I think I'm gonna go ahead and leave. I guess I didn't get much sleep last night," I said, excusing myself. I stood up to leave, then was stopped by another question.

"Why didn't you sleep well?" Ami questioned. I slowly turned around.

"I don't know, I just didn't. You know, just one of those nights where you keep looking at the clock to see it's only been another hour," I said, turning back around. "I'm going back home, try to take a nap or something." I quickly walked away before anyone could ask anything else, but my getaway wasn't fast enough. Andrew was just coming into work and stopped me for a quick chat. _Dammit, I just want to leave!_

"Hey there, Usagi. Have you talked to Mamoru lately?" he asked, grabbing my hand and leading me to the counter. I could feel my friends watching me, wondering why I hadn't left.

"Of course. Why?" I asked, trying to sound casual as he gave me a glass of water.

"So, are you going to meet him there, or wait until he calls to tell you he's here?" Andrew asked. I choked on the water I had been sipping.

"What?" I asked between coughs.

"Oops, maybe that was supposed to be a surprise," he said quietly.

"No, you've already said it so give me the details," I said. _Why the hell is he coming back? He can't come back, not now. He'll ruin everything._

"Um, well, he's supposed to arrive tomorrow afternoon. He said he had a surprise and that he was looking forward to coming back. He didn't say how long he was staying though."

"Better not be too long," I said without thinking.

"What? Why?" Andrew questioned, completely surprised.

"Huh? Oh," _SHIT!!!_ "Well, he has his exams coming up soon. He can't fall behind, it'll take forever to get caught up if he stays too long. We wouldn't want him to have to retake anything, would we?" I said quickly. _Did he buy it?_

"No, you're right. He's probably just on break and thought he'd visit," Andrew said after a minute. _That was close, too close. You need to get some more sleep or something, Usa._

"Listen, I should go. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night so I'm really tired."

"Oh, okay. Sorry I brought you back in when you were on your way out."

"It's okay. I'll see you later," I said, getting up. I quickly left before anyone else could stop me from leaving.

* * *

"I wonder what that was about," Makoto said, watching Usagi rush out of the Crown Parlor.

"One way to find out," Minako said, getting up. She quickly made her way to the counter and started talking with Andrew.

"Yeah, that's one way to find out, and flirt," Rei said while rolling her eyes.

"I wonder…"

"What is it, Ami?" Makoto asked.

"She didn't look too happy when he brought her back in, or with their conversation. I have a feeling he told her something she didn't want to hear. She didn't look too happy while talking about Mamoru either. Do you think something happened between them? Or maybe he's not responding to her again?" Ami questioned.

"Now that you mention it, she doesn't talk about him unless we bring him up. Even then, she doesn't really talk about him. She'll answer the question and that's it. I wonder why?" Makoto said.

"I don't buy her story today about sleep late night. Something's going on, why would she lie to us?" Rei asked. At that moment, Minako returned to the table.

"You won't believe what Andrew told me," she said, returning to her seat. "Apparently Mamoru is returning tomorrow. He said Usagi didn't know, but he figures it was supposed to be a surprise. Although, he said her reaction was different than he thought it would be."

"How so?" Rei asked.

"Well, he said that when he asked her how long she thought Mamoru would be staying, she said 'better not be too long' then went on about him falling behind if he stayed too long. He said that she didn't have to sit there and think of what to say, that she just came out and said it so he's not sure if she was trying to cover herself or if she really meant it," Minako said.

"It fits with our theory," Ami said.

"Wait, we have a theory? When did we get a theory?" Minako asked.

"While you were flirting with Andrew," Makoto said.

* * *

_Okay, so he's coming back. He'll be here tomorrow afternoon… Shit! This isn't good. What should I do? Should I just avoid him while he's here? What if he tries to contact me? What if the girls or Andrew starts asking questions? I won't tell them, they can't know. What would they think if they knew? Would they still be here? Or would they have left me alone already? I don't want to be alone…_

I walked silently down the street, lost in my thoughts. My fears. I played my part so well these last two years that no one had suspected anything. Now he's coming back. Would it all have been for nothing? I was so nervous now that I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep now, even if I tried. Maybe the dreams and nightmares were trying to tell me something after all. If it were anything but this, I would go to Rei and ask her to help me interpret them. I was too much of a coward to tell her, to much of a coward to tell anyone. Not even Luna knew what was going on, all she knew was the lie I'd been feeding everyone. That's the thing about a web of lies, they eventually catch up to you and blow up in your face when you least expect it. I have to keep this from getting away from me. I won't let them find out, but I may have to tell them some of the minor things to distract them from the major ones. Two years ago was hell on earth, I don't want to go back there. I _**won't**_ go back there.


	2. Conversations

**Yay! I'm back with another chapter! throws confetti everywhere Okay, I'm done now, really... Just got off a nine hour shift at work then started on this. Running on a lack of sleep, so there's probably (most likely) typos. Oh well, stuff happens. Yeah, I own nothing but the plot line, as much as I wish I was the owner of the characters...**

* * *

** Chapter 1  
**

I lay on my bed staring out the window. I was avoiding… Pretty much everything. My cell had gone off a few times since I had arrived home and Luna had tried asking me some questions. I'm not sure what she wanted to know, I just walked right past her and straight to my room. I had started to think, and I mean seriously think, about everything. What should I tell them? What do I want to keep to myself? What about Mamoru? What's this surprise he was talking about? What the hell am I going to do tomorrow? Should I try to find out why he's back? Should I act like I never heard anything? _Damn it! Damn it all! _I screamed mentally as I rolled over, now staring at the door. _I need to figure things out, but how? I can't go to one of the girls, then they'll know I've been lying to them… That's not an option. Who can I talk to? Who knows enough and at the same time, nothing at all? Damn it, Usagi, think!_ I scolded myself while slapping my forehead. Luna chose that exact moment to walk in.

"Usagi, what are you doing?" _Duh!_

"What does it look like?" I asked wearily.

"Ok, then how about, why?"

"Because I can't think right now. At least not of anything of use," I mumbled.

"What's going on, Usagi? You've been acting strange lately," she said, jumping up onto the bed.

"I just have a lot on my mind, that's all," I answered honestly, for once.

"When is you're mom coming home?"

"Dunno, she didn't say. Sounded like she was having fun in France, that and grandma won't let her leave… Said she doesn't visit often enough."

"Why didn't you go with her?" Luna questioned. _You're getting a little too nosey, cat._

"Just in case we needed the Senshi. Never know when a youma will show up and there was no telling how long she'd want to stay there," I answered numbly.

"Have you heard from you dad lately?"

"No." I rolled back over to face the window again, hoping Luna would shut up now.

"Maybe you should call him," she suggested. I let out a sigh and got up. Luna watched me for a moment before speaking again. "Now where are you going?"

"Out," was all I said.

* * *

"So, what did she say?" Ami asked what appeared to be a wrist watch, the three girls around her knew otherwise.

"Not much of anything. She got tired of me questioning her and left. All she said was that she was going out," Luna's voice could be heard. "I don't know what's going on. She hasn't really said much of anything now that I think about it."

"What do you mean?" Makoto asked.

"She doesn't talk unless I start talking to her first, even then half the time she doesn't answer. She didn't say anything about Mamoru though. When I went to check on her, she was laying on her bed, smacking herself on the forehead. She said she couldn't think of anything that was of any use, whatever she meant by that," Luna stated, trailing off. "I have a question for you four. Did Usagi eat anything while she was with you?"

"No, she said she wasn't hungry, that she ate before she met up with us," Rei replied.

"Why do you ask, Luna?" Ami asked.

"She said she ate first? She told me she'd eat there… Now I _know_ she's not eating. She's lost a lot of weight lately and I'm starting to worry about her."

"Did she really not sleep well last night?" Rei questioned.

"I don't know, I was out patrolling, just in case," Luna answered. "I'll keep an eye on her tonight though. Maybe I'll get some answers." With that, Luna had signed off leaving the inner senshi to talk amongst themselves.

"Now I'm starting to wonder…" Minako said quietly.

"Yeah, it's not like Usagi to hide things from us," Rei said.

"Well, she hadn't told us about not hearing from Mamoru until you cornered her at her house," Makoto pointed out.

"She has a point. There have been times that she hid things from us because she didn't want us to worry about her. I have a feeling that she's hiding a lot from us, and has been for some time now. Maybe it's finally getting to her," Ami said quietly.

"Or what she's hiding from is coming back and she doesn't know how to keep her secret anymore…" Rei said thoughtfully. "You think maybe we should talk to Mamoru? See if he knows anything?"

"We might have to," Ami said.

* * *

I walked around the park for a while, not really paying attention to anything other than the thoughts racing through my mind. _I'll go talk to him, maybe he won't say anything. Then again, he probably would, just to get me to talk. I don't know… I could call him… I think I will._ I had decided. I took my phone out of my back pocket and called Mamoru's cell.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mamoru…" I said, suddenly nervous.

"Usagi! How are you? I haven't heard from you in a while," he said cheerfully.

"I know, sorry about that. I've been busy," I said slowly.

"Youma?" he questioned.

"No. Just other stuff," I paused, thinking how to go about this.

"Is something wrong, Usa?"

"Andrew told me you would be here tomorrow, is that true?" I questioned.

"Yeah. I'm getting my things from storage and sending them here. Guess what Usa? I'm getting married!" he said happily.

"Really? I'm so happy for you!" I said, truly happy for him. He deserved it, he really did. "So, is that the surprise Andrew was talking about?"

"Yeah, I didn't tell him what it was though."

"That was probably good…" I mumbled, trailing off.

"Usa, are you sure you're okay, you sound upset."

"I've had a lot on my mind lately and I just can't think clearly about anything right now," I answered.

"Have you talked to Rei?"

"No," I said, maybe a little too quick.

"She still doesn't know?!" he asked, sounding shocked.

"No, no one does," I said wearily.

"So, I take it everyone still thinks we're together?" he asked, not sounding upset, but he wasn't happy either.

"Yeah. I know, I should have said something, but I didn't."

"Why?"

"Because I'm not ready for the questions that would follow," I replied brokenly. I finally quit walking around and sat on a near by bench. "I'm a coward, okay?!" I said, frustrated now.

"No, you're not. You've grown a lot since I first met you. You are no coward, you're just…" he paused for a minute. "I don't know, scared of what they'll say?"

"I guess… I haven't told any of them anything yet."

"You mean they know nothing at all??" he asked, clearly stunned.

"Exactly. They don't know about my parents, or us, nothing," I said. "I didn't know who to bring it up, and after a while, I was just afraid to. The nightmares I've been having lately, I know Rei could interpret them for me, but like I said, I haven't told them anything. Telling her about the nightmares would mean I have to tell her everything that I haven't told them these last two years. I'm just-"

"Whoa, nightmares? When did those start?" he asked.

"A few months ago," I answered.

"And Luna hasn't said anything about them?" he asked.

"No, she's not there much. She always out patrolling or over at Makoto's or Minako's place. She doesn't know anything about them."

"What kind of nightmares?" he asked, sounding concerned now.

"The kind that wake me up and shake me up enough that I can't get back to sleep. They scare me enough that I'm _afraid_ to go back to sleep. I just… I don't know what to do right now. I just feel stuck," I said, finally speaking my mind.

"You really need to talk to Rei, Usagi. You know she could help with that. You have to face them sooner or later, and I don't mean the nightmares."

"I didn't figure you did," I replied with a sigh.

"One more thing, are you eating enough?"

"What's with you people and my eating habits?" I asked, just a little annoyed.

"I know what you're hiding, remember? You need to eat, Usagi. Don't let yourself get in the same position you got in last time. I have to go. See you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I'll be there," I said quietly. I put my phone back in my pocket as I stood back up. After standing there for a couple minutes, I slowly started walking again, this time heading back to the Crown._He's right, I need to keep eating. I guess I'll go back and get something to eat. If I go back home, Luna will probably start on me again. I wonder if the girls are still there. I hope not. I don't want to explain why I'm back._

Twenty minutes later I walked back into the Crown, and headed for the counter. Andrew had looked up when the doorbell chimed and had waved me over. His customary smile was nowhere to be seen.

"What's up, Andrew?" I asked, sitting down on the stool.

"What happened?" he asked. _Huh?_ "You're soaked!" _What?!_ I looked at myself, he was right. I looked over my shoulder and out the window.

"When did it start raining?" I asked aloud.

"You didn't know it was raining?! Are you feeling okay? Minako told me you didn't even eat when you were here earlier."

"Again with the food," I said, rolling my eyes. "Got grilled cheese?"

"Sure," he said after watching me for a few seconds, then walked away.

"Usagi! You're back," I heard Rei say, coming up behind me. "And you're soaked! What happened?" I looked over at her and noticed the others were there as well.

"I felt like talking a walk in the rain, it's no big deal," I said.

"It_**is**_ a big deal, it's storming out there," Makoto said, waving a hand towards the door. "You _hate_ storms."

"Storming?" I asked, slightly confused now. Once I paid enough attention, I noticed she was right. How could I have missed the thunder and lightning? Then again, how could I have missed that I was soaked to the bone? _Man, what I wouldn't do for a good night's sleep. Just one._

"Huh," I said quietly. "How'd I miss that?"

"That's what we'd like to know," Ami said. _Crap, that was out loud?_

"Must be sleepier than I thought. Luna wouldn't shut up and let me sleep so I left," I said, then thanked Andrew when he returned with my grilled cheese sandwich.

"Thanks." I grabbed the plate and headed towards a booth in the back. For some odd reason, I wanted to watch the storm. For the first time, I felt completely calm during a storm, it was a new thing for me.

"Usagi, what are you doing?" Minako asked. _Why are they following me?_

"What does it look like I'm doing?" I asked, getting annoyed with this game.

"You hate storms, so why are you sitting where you can watch it? Why were you out _walking_ in it?" Rei questioned, sitting down across from me, once again. I could tell she was studying me, trying to read my face, if not my thoughts.

"Because, for some odd reason it's calming today," I stated, then took a bit of my sandwich. I stared out the window as I ate, thinking about my conversation with Mamoru. _Would they really understand? Could I really tell them what I haven't said these past two years? I don't know, I just don't know. He says to tell her… _

"Damn it," I mumbled, not realizing I had spoken out loud once again.

"What's gotten into you Usagi?" Rei asked, sounding shocked.

I looked at her once again and noticed the surprised look on her face, then noticed the others wore a similar expression.

"What?" I asked, confused once again.

"You barely talk to us anymore, you almost never eat anything, you suddenly like thunder storms and you're swearing for no reason," Minako counted off her reasons. "What's going on?"

"Umm…" I was at a complete loss for words.

"That's not an answer, Usagi. Talk to us," Rei said. This time I could hear the concern in her voice. That's not something you hear coming from her very often.

"Fine, I'll start with what we've put together," Minako stated. I groaned, knowing this couldn't be good. "You never really talk about anything, much less Mamoru, unless we push you into talking. You don't go on and on about Mamoru anymore so… You two aren't together anymore, are you?" she finally asked. _Okay, no point in lying about that one…_

"No, we aren't," I said, taking another bite of my sandwich.

"When did you two break up?" Makoto asked. I could tell that they were thinking it was recent, that that's why I had been so spacey lately.

"It's been a while now," I said.

I knew what Minako said next was nothing more than a stab in the dark to get me to smile, but…

"So, let me guess. You're madly in love with someone else who has no idea. You're scared of what he'd say if he knew and at the same time, scared of what we would have said about it?!" she rushed.

I immediately started choking on my grilled cheese.

Ami patted my back until I quit coughing. When I felt like I could breath again, I stammered, "W- What?! What are you talking about?"

Minako's eyes grew rounder by the second. _Shit!!!!!_

"I think I should get going," I said, trying to get away as fast as I could.

"Nope, not this time. Sit and talk, now!" Rei demanded.

"No." I refused to sit back down and could tell that Rei was debating on forcing me back in my seat. "I should go." I left the rest of my sandwich there and rushed out of the Crown and back into the pouring rain.

* * *

Haha! I'm so evil! Any ideas what's going on? Anyone? listens to crickets chirping Hmm... Please review! Till next time! 


	3. Walls Breaking?

**Yay, another update! Sorry guys, I've been pretty sick and I'm moving in a week so I haven't had a lot of time for this. But, I got another chapter done, took longer than I wanted, but hey, at least I did an update! Still own nothing but the plot line.**

* * *

_That was too close. No doubt Minako has caught on now… I should have played stupid and stuck around. They'll really start asking questions next time I see them. Maybe I should just avoid them for a while. I just need more time. I can't tell them yet, I'm not ready._

I walked around the city in the pouring rain, trying to get my thoughts together. Every time I thought I had an answer, it left me. It was always there, just out of my reach, teasing me. I knew that Mamoru was right, I needed to tell the senshi what was going on, I just couldn't bring myself to say anything.

I was a little surprised that it took Minako this long to figure out that Mamoru and I weren't together anymore. She's usually the first to pick up on these things. It took her teasing me to realize that she knew less than she normally would. _Great, she'll be watching me like a hawk next time I see her. I don't know what to do now._

I finally stopped walking and took in my surroundings. _Ha, figures I would end up here._ I thought to myself. My thoughts were interrupted when my phone rang. I looked at it for a moment before answering.

"Hello?"

"Usagi, where are you?"

"Mamoru?"

"Where are you?" he repeated urgently.

"Why? What's up?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out," he said. "I just got off the phone with Andrew. Minako, took the phone from him and told me what happened. She said that she made a joke about you being in love with someone and that you suddenly looked scared and took off. Are you okay? Where are you?"

"I'm fine. I just needed to think. I wasn't planning on her saying that, then again, Minako is good at saying things you don't expect her to say. She got a little too close for me…" I said quietly. I could hear him getting ready to repeat his earlier question once again. "I'm at the pier."

"_The_ pier? The same one from two years ago?" he asked, sounding nervous.

"Yeah," I answered.

"Usagi,"

"I'm just thinking, nothing else. You don't have to worry about me," I said.

"Yes I do. We may not be together any more Usa, but you're still my friend. Just promise me you won't do anything."

"I promise I won't do anything," I repeated. We talked for a few minutes longer before I hung up. I tried to clear my mind while watching the storm. I had never been this calm during a storm before, so I planned on taking advantage of that. I stood there, leaning on the railing, just watching. I had let my mind go blank, let myself forget everything, even if only for a few minutes. The rain started coming down in sheets, but I didn't care. I didn't care that the water under the pier was rising either. I felt at peace for the first time in two years, then I heard Minako yelling at me and my panic came back with a vengeance.

"Usagi, wait! Please!" I heard her plea. I wanted nothing more than to run, but I couldn't get myself to move. "Please, Usagi, don't run," she said, coming up behind me.

"I won't," I mumbled.

"Come on, lets go to my house, mom and dad are gone for the weekend, and we need to get you dried off before you catch a cold," she said, grabbing my arm and leading me away from the pier. I followed her to her house in silence. She tried getting me to talk the whole way, but my mind had gone foggy. The only thing I could think of was _I have to tell someone, right? Will she understand? What if she tells everyone else? They'll be so mad at me for not telling them sooner, I know they will._

"Usagi?"

"Hmm?" I looked up at Minako.

"Are you just going to stand there or are you coming in?" I looked around and noticed we were at Minako's. I was standing in the doorway, like an idiot. A scared, nervous, idiot. I sighed and walked all the way in, closing the door behind me. I quietly muttered an apology as I took off my shoes. Minako was beside me shortly with a towel and a change of clothes.

"Go dry off. Do you want some hot cocoa?" she asked. I simply nodded, then headed to the bathroom to dry off.

* * *

"So you found her?"

"Yeah. She was kindda out of it on the way here though. I really think I scared her earlier with that comment," Minako said quietly.

"Where is she right now?" Rei was heard asking.

"In the bathroom changing into something dry," Minako answered. 

"What do you mean by she was out of it?" Ami asked.

"She was too quiet. More so than she has been lately. I actually had to keep looking to see if she was still with me. Then when we got here, she just stood there in the doorway. I had to tell her we were here. She was here, but her mind was a hundred miles away. I'm not sure what to say to her now, I don't want to make her run again," Minako said.

"Maybe you should just wait and see if she says anything first. Maybe she wants to talk about whatever's bothering her, but not with all of us there. We did have her opening up a little at the crown," Makoto started. 

"Yeah, until I chased her off."

"Knock it off, Minako. If you keep acting like that right now, you're not going to get her to say anything at all," Rei scolded.

"She's right, Minako," Makoto agreed.

"Fine. I have to go, I hear her coming back downstairs."

* * *

"Who were you talking to?" I asked, walking into the kitchen.

"Huh?" Minako asked, turning around. For a minute I thought she was going to deny it. "Oh, I was talking to Rei. I called to let them know that I found you. I didn't want them to stay out in the rain looking for you when you're here. They're all going home, I told them you just wanted some space, so they aren't coming here," she said, while pouring the hot cocoa into a couple mugs. She handed me one, then went back into the living room. I did the only thing I could think of at the moment, I followed her. She was already sitting down on the couch when I came into the room. She patted the seat next to her, so I sat down as well.

"I'm sorry if I upset you earlier, Usagi. I didn't mean to," she said into her mug.

"I know. It's okay," I answered, taking a sip of the warm liquid.

"No it's not," she stated firmly, making me look at her. "I knew right after I said it by your reaction that it wasn't okay. There are some things that we like to keep to ourselves for what ever reason. I won't pry anymore," she said quietly. She then stared at the T.V.

I just sat there thinking. I didn't know what made me do it, but I just started talking. It could have been that I felt bad that she was blaming herself. Then again, it could have been just the fact that I couldn't leave it alone anymore.

"Mamoru and I haven't been together for the last two years. I didn't know how to bring it up, so I didn't say anything at all. After a while, I was just to nervous to say anything when you guys asked about him, it had been too long after we broke up to suddenly say we weren't together anymore. I know I should have said something sooner, I just couldn't get myself to say anything. It was mutual though, our breaking up," I clarified. I hadn't noticed the shock on her face, I was afraid to look. Afraid of what her reaction would be.

"We talked for a while afterwards, then it kind of tapered off. Today was the first time I'd spoken to him in six months. He's engaged now, I'm happy for him. He sounded so excited when he told me. He's just coming back to get his things from storage," I said, finally stopping.

"You're okay with that?" she asked. I just nodded. "Okay. After you took off earlier, I figured you two hadn't been together for a while, especially after you're comment. I didn't think it had been that long though," she said with a small laugh. "There's more than that though, isn't there? More that's happened that you haven't told us?" she questioned. I just sat there for a minute, then finally nodded again. "I thought so. You don't have to tell me right now, or even me at that. If you want to talk to someone else, just say so. I just don't want you to bottle things up like you have been. You've changed so much in the last two years, it's worried us, Usagi. You're not the same happy, bubbly person we met. We're just concerned about you, you know that, right?" Again, I only nodded, fearing my voice would fail me if I tried to speak. "You also know that you can tell us anything, right? Anything at all."

"I know that. It's just telling someone means accepting that it really happened, that it's not a figment of my imagination. Some of it, I don't want to be real, I don't want to face it, but running from it hasn't gotten me anywhere either. I keep telling myself that I need more time, and maybe I do. Then again, maybe I'm just giving myself a reason to not say anything," I whispered. I knew she heard every word I said though. Out the corner of my eye, I could see her struggling with herself. She wanted to question me, but she also wanted to wait to see how much I would say. I knew that, like Rei, Minako wasn't very patient when she wanted answers, but she was trying. That's all that mattered.

"Usagi," I heard Minako say quietly. She sat her mug down on the end table before pulling me into a hug. That's when I finally broke.

"I just don't know what to do anymore. It' hurts so much. Why is it we can never fix the things we really want to fix? Why can't people just accept us for who we are, rather than who they want us to be? Why don't-?" I cried, burying my face in her shoulder. I couldn't take it anymore. It really isn't a good idea to bottle up your emotions, but sometimes you just don't know what else to do. They always thought I said whatever I felt, whatever came to mind, but that wasn't true. There were always thing I wanted to say, but never did for fear of what they'd think. I wanted to be happy again, I wanted to laugh at everything and nothing for no reason. 

I just sat there and cried in Minako's arms. She'd taken my mug from me at one point, but I did nothing to stop her. I couldn't get myself to do anything other than cry.

* * *

Minako walked quietly to the kitchen to place the mugs in the sink. She'd sat with Usagi on the couch for over an hour, just hugging her friend while she cried. She'd debated on calling the others and telling them what Usagi had said, but she didn't want to upset the blond more by doing so. She'd never seen Usagi cry that much before and know that there was nothing she could do to help. It hurt knowing that whatever it was that was making Usagi feel this upset couldn't be good, but it hurt even more knowing that the girl had been suffering alone.

* * *

"Rei, what are you doing?" Makoto asked, sitting up. Ami looked at too. Rei was walking over to the phone.

"I'm going to call Minako," she replied.

"Why? We know that she's found Usagi," Ami questioned, putting her book down.

"Rei?" Makoto asked again.

"I've just got a feeling she needs to talk," she said, picking up the phone.

"Hey, Minak-" Rei started.

"Hang on," came Minako's reply. The line was quiet for a moment and Rei was starting to look annoyed. "Sorry, had to make sure she was still asleep. I believe her. Well, what she said earlier about not sleeping well last night. She's been out for a while, but she's not sleeping soundly. Kami, Rei, I had no idea she was hiding so much from us."

"Whoa, stop for a second, Minako," Rei said, the others looking up at her curiously now. She waved them over and turned up the volume on the phone. "What happened?" she asked.

"Well, I asked her if she knew that she could still tell us anything. After that, she slowly started talking, then she just broke. I mean, she started crying and didn't stop until she fell asleep. She and Mamoru haven't been together for the last two years, she told me that. She also said that, yes, there is more that she hasn't told us. Said she hasn't said anything because that would mean accepting that it happened, something bad happened, Rei. I know it. I just don't know what it is, but you should have seen her. I've never seen her so… I don't know. She's beyond upset, and hurt. More like completely crushed. She also said something about people accepting others for who they are, and not who they want them to be. It didn't really make any sense, but she did open up some more," Minako reeled. 

"Damn! You're serious?" Makoto asked.

"Yeah. There was more but like I said, it didn't make a lot of sense-" Minako stopped suddenly.

"Minako? What is it?" Rei questioned.

The line was silent for a moment longer. Then a scream was heard in the background. The sound of the phone falling to the ground could be heard, as well as Minako yelling, "Usagi, what's wrong?"

"Minako!" Rei screamed into the phone.

* * *

"Usagi, what's wrong?" Minako yelled, dropping the phone. She ran from the kitchen to where she'd left Usagi sleeping. 

Usagi had rolled off the couch and was now laying on the floor, screaming from the nightmare that had gripped her. Minako ran to the blonde's side, trying desperately to wake her.

"NO! Don't!" Usagi screamed again. "Leave them alone! No!" The last one had been in pain, rather than fear. Minako could see the tears running down the princess's face as she struggled through her nightmare. 

"Come on, Usagi, wake up!" Minako cried, shaking Usagi's shoulders. Usagi finally woke with a start, swinging her arms around, fighting off the remains of the nightmare.

Minako immediately hugged the smaller blonde. "It's okay, you're awake now. It's alright." She sat there, rocking her friend.

* * *

After a few minutes I had finally realized that Minako was rocking me. I tried to talk a few times, but nothing came out, and she'd tell me again that everything was okay. But it wasn't.

"I'm awake," I finally said. I slowly pulled away from her hug. She looked at me curiously, trying to figure out what I was doing. "I have to check," I said, standing up.

"Check what?" she asked.

"Have to call them. I need to be sure," I mumbled.

"Usagi, what is it?" she asked, worry now apparent in her voice.

"Rei, Ami and Makoto," I mumbled again. I was too set on finding the phone. 

"Shit! I forgot about them!" Minako squealed, then ran into the kitchen. She came back out a minute later with the phone in her hand, talking to someone on the other end.

"Where's my cell?" I asked, then had a thought. "Who is that?"

"Rei," Minako said, looking at me. I stopped at the name. _It was just a nightmare. It wasn't real…_ I grabbed the phone from Minako, I had to make sure.

"Rei? Is that really you?" I asked, hearing my voice quiver.

"Yeah, are you alright, Usagi? What happened?" 

"You're okay?" I asked, ignoring her questions.

"Yes, I'm fine. Are you-"

"Okay," I said, pausing. "How about Ami and Makoto? Do you know if they're okay?"

"They're right here. We're all fine Usagi."

"Can I talk to them? Please? I just need to make sure," I begged.

"Usagi? What's going on?" I heard Ami asked. I felt relieved to hear her voice. _She's okay too._

"You're okay too?" I asked.

"Yes-"

"Where's Makoto?" I asked.

"Right here," Ami answered. Then Makoto came on the line.

"Usagi, I'm here. Now tell us what's going on," she said.

"Everyone's okay," I said, more to myself than anyone else. I handed the phone back to Minako and slowly walked back to the living room.

"No, she had some kind of nightmare. I'm not sure, she didn't say." I heard Minako saying. "Yeah, that's my guess, it had to do with us. Um, I don't know, let me ask."

Minako came to the doorway and stopped, phone still in her hand. "Would it be okay with you if they came over and stayed the night?" she asked. I thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

"She said yes. Okay, see you guys in a little bit. Bye."

Minako set the phone down and made her way back to the couch.

"Are you okay?" she questioned. I just sat there. _I don't know… Am I okay?_

* * *

**Yay! Another one done! Well, let me know what you thought of this one! Till next time!**_  
_


	4. Falling Deeper in the Hole

**Yep, I'm back, with two chapters this time! It's been a while so I thought I'd give you guys a little more than normal. Oh, I still don't own any of the characters... Drats!!**

**Chapter 3 - Falling Deeper in the Hole**

* * *

"How is she?" Rei asked as she walked into Minako's house.

"Dunno. She hasn't said anything since I had you on the phone. She sat down on the couch and hasn't moved since," Minako said quietly.

"So, she didn't say anything about the nightmare she had?" Ami asked. Minako sighed as she shook her head.

"I don't know what to do. I can't even get her to look at me. It was bad, the nightmare she had. She was so pale… She's the one that had the nightmare and I was scared," Minako whispered.

"Where is she?" Rei asked. Minako pointed to the living room.

Rei slowly walked into the living room. She froze when she saw her blond friend just sitting there on the couch. Usagi wasn't moving, she didn't even look up when they came into the room. Usagi could be a space case but to this extent… It just wasn't normal and it worried her friends to no end.

"Usa?" Rei asked, moving towards the couch once again. Nothing. "Usagi?" she asked again, a little louder this time. Still nothing.

Rei looked over her shoulder at her friends and shrugged her shoulders. She turned back to her princess, the worry now very apparent on her face. "Usagi!" she almost screamed. Usagi finally moved, more like jumped a foot in the air. "Usagi, what were you thinking about?" Rei inquired as she sat down next to the blond. Usagi simply shook her head and watched the floor.

"Usagi, please say something. You haven't said anything, or looked at anything other than the floor for the last hour now," Minako pleaded.

Again, there was nothing from Usagi. The inner senshi had no idea what to do. Their leader, their princess, their best friend needed them and none of them knew how to help her. They slowly filed into the room and sat around the couch. Rei and Minako sat on the couch, on either side of Usagi, Ami sat in the recliner while Makoto took a spot on the floor. They sat there, watching the all too still Usagi. After another half hour of nothing, they decided to put in a movie. Maybe Usagi just needed some time to get past her nightmare before she spoke of it to them.

* * *

_Why won't they go away? I don't want to see them anymore. It hurts too much. I just… I want it all to go away. Please, just go away._ I begged silently.

"Usagi!" Rei practically yelled causing me to break out of my thoughts. "Usagi, what were you thinking about?" Rei inquired as she sat down next to me. I just shook head and watched the floor. I couldn't look at them yet. I knew if I did, I'd end up reliving the nightmares. I couldn't take seeing that again this soon.

"Usagi, please say something. You haven't said anything, or looked at anything other than the floor for the last hour now," Minako pleaded.

I felt bad, hurting them this way, but I didn't have the heart to tell them what I saw. I knew that's what they really wanted to hear right now. So, I continued watching the floor until they gave in. Someone had finally put in a movie and I soon felt everyone's attention on me fade.

_I have to fix this. I know I'm worrying all my friends, I don't want them to worry. So, who all was in my nightmares? I know the senshi were all there, inners and outers. The outers were tied up for a while, then unconscious. Tuxedo Mask wasn't there, lucky him. Luna and Artemis? I don't remember seeing them there… The inners._ I froze once again. I had to work through the nightmares myself. I wanted to tell Rei and let her pick through them for me, but I couldn't do that to her. Not when I'd have to fill in all the wholes. _The inners, _I started again,_ were in front of me. Stupid place to be… Mercury was the first one out, most likely cause she's the one who always comes up with the plans. She always finds the weak points on our enemies so they would go for her first. Jupiter was next, piss her off wrong and she's damn near unstoppable. Then Venus went down. Mars was last, always the stubborn one. She's always been the one to jump in front of me to protect me. She's the closest one to me, hurts more to get her last, injure her more than the others. But they didn't just hurt her, they…_

I couldn't get myself to finish that sentence. I cast a quick glance at Rei out the corner of my eyes. She didn't notice, but I felt someone else watching me. I looked the other direction and locked eyes with Minako then noticed Makoto watching as well. Ami had fallen asleep, otherwise she'd probably be watching me too. I quickly shook my head and starting to watch the movie.

-

I woke up early the next morning, early enough that everyone was still asleep. I got my dry clothes from Mina's room and left her house before anyone woke up. I didn't want to hear the questions about the nightmares I'd been having. I went home and changed my clothes, then headed back out before Luna woke up. I had to meet Michiru and Haruka before Mamoru arrived at the airport. I wanted to be free again and Michiru was going to help me with that, she just didn't know it yet.

I made my way over to the studio that Michiru and Haruka always practiced at for their upcoming concerts. I had to wait a while when I got there because the studio wasn't open yet. I ended up taking a walk around the block.

I walked through the halls, listening for Michiru and Haruka. I couldn't remember which room they were normally in, so wandering was all I could think to do. When I had gone around the next corner I heard a piano playing, and Michiru laughing. _I guess this is the right room._ I thought as I knocked on the door. The door opened a moment later and Michiru greeted me.

"Usagi, come on in," she said with a smile. Michiru closed the door behind me. "I was beginning to wonder if you were ever coming back to finish your project. The festival is in three days, remember?"

"Yeah, I've had a lot on my plate the last couple days," I said.

"Have you changed you're mind on going through with this?" Haruka asked from her spot at the piano.

"No. This is something I need to do. I may try to back out on that day though. If I try to back out, you'll stop me, right?" I questioned. Both women nodded. "Good, thanks. Oh, there's two now, not one. The second one, I just need you to do the music, nothing more."

"That's fine, we're last. So, what's the second song?" Michiru inquired.

"Can't tell you. You'll find out with everyone else," I said with a slight grin. Haruka started pouting, making me smile fully.

"Okay, as long as we can practice the music before then," Michiru replied.

"Hai," I agreed. "I need to make sure the music sounds right anyway." I made my way over to the piano and took my normal place next to Haruka's bench. Within minutes Haruka and Michiru were both playing and I was humming along.

* * *

"Morning Minako," Rei said, rubbing her eyes as she wandered into the kitchen. "Hey Ami, Makoto." Rei then looked around for a second, then focused on Minako once more. "Where's Usagi?"

"Dunno. She was already gone when I woke up. She didn't leave a note or anything either." Minako answered.

"We figure that she probably left early so she could meet Mamoru at the airport. Maybe she wanted to see him alone first?" Makoto said, cocking an eyebrow.

"Hmm, maybe," was Rei's reply. "Maybe not. She's been keeping too many secrets lately. I know there's something… Just… I don't know." Rei rubbed her face with her hands. "I have plenty of ideas on what she would be hiding from us, but everything I think of just seems as unlikely as the next. Nothing fits!" said a very frustrated Rei.

"I know. After Usagi's confession to Minako yesterday, it seems like it goes deeper than any of us thought. It does look like she's trying to get past it, whatever _it_ is. Do you think her parents know what's bothering her?" Ami asked.

"No." All eyes suddenly turned to Makoto.

"Why do you say that?" Minako asked.

"Her family isn't in town, haven't been all month."

"Wha- How? When did you find out about that?" Rei questioned.

"I had gone over to Usagi's a few weeks ago, before we suspected something was bothering her." Makoto answered, her face lowered. "Her mom had called while we were there. She said he brother had gone to a prep school in England. Her parents were away, visiting him, said they'd be gone for most of the month, maybe longer. They stopped in France to see Usagi's grandmother. Now that I think about it, something was bothering her then. She didn't sound happy to be talking with her mom, she was angry… Well, more than angry. I've never heard Usagi talk to anyone like that, she was so cold… I mean, it's like it wasn't her," Makoto explained slowly. Makoto explained.

"How come you never said anything?" Minako asked softly.

"Thought I was just imagining things or over reacting. I mean, Usagi doesn't act like that. She doesn't get angry for no apparent reason, especially at her mom. It was hard to say anything. I didn't really want to believe that it was her, that she could be even the slightest bit cold hearted. It just didn't make any sense at the time," Makoto answered.

"No, it doesn't, but right now, it's all we've got," Ami replied. "Any idea what time Mamoru is supposed to land?" All the girls shook their heads. "Then I guess we go to the Crown and ask Andrew. He should know something about Mamoru's arrival."

* * *

"Thanks for helping me with this."

"It's not a problem, Usagi. Besides, that was really good. You're ready for the concert," Haruka said.

"The music for your second song is beautiful. How did you come by it?" Michiru inquired.

"I um… I wrote it," I mumbled.

"Are you serious?!" they both questioned. I nodded.

"I didn't know that you knew how to write music. Then again, I didn't know you could sing either," Haruka laughed. "You're just full of surprises, aren't you?" she joked.

"Yeah, surprises and secrets," I mumbled to the ground.

"What was that?" Michiru asked.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. Hey, I've got to get going. I need to run home and get something before I meet Mamoru at the airport. I'll see you both tomorrow," I said. I quickly gathered my things and took off for the second time that day.

Once I got home I tossed my things on the couch and began my search. I knew I needed to find it, I was running out of time. If Mamoru saw me right now, he'd throw a fit. After twenty minutes of my head ache worsening, I seriously thought I was loosing my mind. I had searched Everywhere and couldn't find it. A few minutes later I had a thought. I pulled out my phone and stared blankly at it for a moment. I knew I was going to call someone, but my mind had gone blank for a moment. I stood there for a few minutes, then remembered and punched in the number.

* * *

"Hi." Minako said into her phone.

"Minako! Are you still at you're place?"

"Usagi! Yeah, I'm still here. Where'd you-"

"Good. I need you to do something for me really fast. Please, it's important!" Usagi rushed. She didn't sound too good, Minako knew immediately that something was wrong.

"Usagi, what is it? What's wrong? Are you alright?" Minako questioned. Ami, Rei and Makoto looked up instantly at Minako's tone of voice.

"Minako, what is it?" Rei questioned, just to have Minako wave her off.

"Usagi?"

"Did… Did I leave my small blue bag there last night?" Usagi asked.

"I'm not sure. Why?" Minako asked, looking more than a little confused.

"I just… I need it. I can't find it. It's important. Did I leave it there?" Usagi asked. She was starting to sound unsure of herself, her focus was fading.

"If you did, do you know where it would be?" Minako questioned, walking towards the front door.

"Where would what be?" Usagi asked, sounding confused.

"Your bag… Are you okay? Did something happen Usagi?" Minako inquired, stopping in the middle of the hall.

"My bag… I can't find my bag. I need it. I'll come over and look for it," Usagi said, trailing off.

"Usagi, where are you right now?" Minako asked urgently.

"Huh? Home."

"I'll get your bag and bring it to you," Minako stated.

"No. I can come get it," Usagi said. "First I just… I'll be there in… Where are you?"

"Stay there, Usagi. I mean it. If I get there to find you gone, I'll personally kick your ass, got it?" Minako demanded. The others saw how pale Minako had gotten in the last few minutes. They stood around nervously, trying to over hear the conversation, they could only wonder what had been said.

"I… Okay." Usagi replied after a minute. "Please hurry though."

"Just stay there. I'll find your bag and bring it to you, okay? Don't go anywhere. Promise me?" Minako asked. The other three stood around nervously trying to over hear the conversation.

Minako hung up the phone immediately and started searching for the bag Usagi had spoke of.

"Minako, what are you looking for?" Rei questioned.

"That blue bag Usagi had yesterday. She said she needs it, she sounded desperate."

"That bag?" Ami asked, pointing to a hook by the door. Minako spun around to look.

"Yes!" Minako declared. She grabbed the bag then rushed out the door, the remaining inner senshi at her feet.

* * *

"I wonder why she wasn't there. She said she'd meet me. Maybe she's with the girls and lost track of time. It wouldn't be the first…" Mamoru said to himself then trailed off. He had left the airport thirty minutes earlier after deciding that Usagi wasn't coming. He had tried calling but received no answer. He was now walking down the street towards the crown when he had spotted the inner senshi across the street, running as though a youma was chasing them. He rushed across the street and started following until he caught up with them.

"What's going on? Youma?" Mamoru hollered.

Makoto looked over her shoulder at the familiar voice. "No. I'm not real sure what's going on. Usagi called Minako asking about a bag. Minako grabbed it and bolted," Makoto explained.

Mamoru nodded, then glanced at Minako. She had her phone out and was trying to call someone. Mamoru's guess was she was calling Usagi, probably getting the same thing he was, her voice mail. "Rei, Ami! Any ideas what's going on?"

"Nope!" Rei hollered back. "Minako said that Usagi asked about her bag and that she sounded desperate to find it. Like Makoto said, once she found it, she just took off."

"Shit," Mamoru said.

"Any ideas?" Ami questioned.

"Yeah, one. Lets just hope I'm wrong."

* * *

**Ha ha! Gotta love the cliff hangers! Just so you know, I'm in an angstsy mood lately so future chapters are not for weak stomachs and the faint hearted. Just thought I'd give out the warning now.**


	5. She's What!

**Chapter 4 - She's What?!**

* * *

"Come on, Usagi, answer the phone!" Minako yelled at her phone. _Damn it. Something's not right. I can feel it. Please, Usagi, answer the phone. You'd better be alright!_ "Rei, do you sense anything?" Minako hollered behind her.

"No, nothing. Why? What's up?" Rei questioned as she caught up to the blonde.

"I don't know. Something just doesn't feel right," Minako answered solemnly.

Rei saw the expression on Minako's face and knew that she was right. Despite the fact that Rei was the physic, Minako could pick up on Usagi's emotions better, she was quicker at realizing when the princess was in trouble. Something was very, very wrong, she only hoped they'd get there in time.

"Look, we're almost there!" Makoto yelled, pointing at Usagi's house.

When they got there, they all stopped in terror. The front door was wide open, two of the windows near the door were busted. It looked like someone had broken in to Usagi's house. None of them dared to move for fear of what they would find. Finally, they moved toward the house, an eerie silence surrounding them all.

Rei made her way to the front door while Ami scanned the area with her mini computer. Minako, Makoto and Mamoru searched outside. Rei stopped just inside the front door, taking in all the broken glass. It was looking more and more like a robbery. Was it just a normal human attack, or caused by Youma? She tried focusing her powers, but she couldn't concentrate. She was too worried about Usagi to focus on anything other than using her eyes. If anyone had spoke to her at that moment, she wouldn't have been able to speak.

She slowly made her way into Usagi's house. _It looks like she fought back, that's a good sign. We know she was aware of what was going on, that she was able to defend herself somewhat. Kami, look at this place! She has to be hurting! _Rei thought to herself as she slowly walked towards the stairs. It didn't look like anything upstairs had been disturbed, she had been downstairs when she was attacked.

"Any sign of her, Rei?" Ami asked, coming up behind the raven haired teen.

Rei didn't dare speak, she simply shook her head. Minako gave Rei a look of sympathy and hugged her gently around her shoulders. Mamoru and Makoto came in behind Minako and looked around as well.

"She's hurt," Ami stated. "There's blood over here," Ami said from her kneeling position on the floor. She looked up cautiously, knowing how everyone in the room must feel. First they learn that their best friend is unhappy and hiding things from them, now she's been kidnapped. No one moved, not even to leave. After a moment, someone asked the obvious question.

"Why didn't she use her communicator? She knew we were coming over, why not tell us to hurry up?" Makoto asked brokenly.

"Maybe they didn't give her a chance," Minako whispered. "I found her phone. It's in the living room, along with her transformation broach and communicator. She's defenseless against whoever has her."

"This isn't good," Mamoru mumbled to himself.

"No shit!" Rei growled.

"Hey, that's not going to get us anywhere, Rei. We're all worried about her," Makoto said angrily.

"Back off of her, Makoto," Minako said dangerously.

"Why? She's not the only one whose worried. She had no reason to snap at Mamoru," Makoto said, still angry.

"It's okay, Makoto. I'm sure Rei has her reasons," Mamoru said quietly. He studied Minako for a moment, then Rei. After a few minutes, he turned around and went back outside.

"I think it's time to get Luna and Artemis here and tell them what happened," Ami suggested.

"Do you think we should tell her parents what happened?" Minako asked.

"No," a reply came from outside. The inner senshi walked to the door to see Mamoru leaning on the side of the building. "There's a lot that you don't know about, her parents being one of them. There's no point in telling people who just don't care." He turned to leave but made it no further than the edge of the lawn.

"What do you mean?" Rei demanded.

"That's something she'll have to tell you. I can't say anything else about it, I promised her I wouldn't. Besides, it's not even relevant to what's happened to her. This appears to be youma, not her so called family. Just focus on finding her."

"Mamoru."

"What?" he asked, turning back around this time.

"You know what's happened to her, don't you? She told you about everything that happened over the last two years," Makoto said.

"Yes and no. I know what happened two years ago, but not everything that's happened since then. I know some of it because our break up was centered around it. The events that immediately followed were a result of _**why**_ we broke up, not because we broke up," Mamoru said quietly. "There is a lot you don't know and I'm not the one you need to hear it from, especially you, Rei. You need to hear all of it from Usagi, not me."

"I don't understand," Rei started.

"I know you don't. I know you guys just want answers and I've told her over and over that she needed to talk to you. She's been a little more than nervous about speaking with you though. The things she wants to talk about and the things she _needs_ to talk to you about aren't easy to bring up. She's scared and that's really all I can tell you."

"She's scared to talk to me?" Rei asked in complete shock. Mamoru just nodded.

"Okay, well, we aren't going to be able to talk to her unless we find her," Ami stated, looking up from her computer. "Lets call Luna, she'll want to know what's going on."

* * *

_Where am I? My head hurts. Why is it so dark? I can't move, why can't I move?!_ I panicked. _Something isn't right. Something happened, what was it? Minako. I had just got off the phone with Minako. She told me to stay put. I have a feeling I'm not at home anymore. How long was I out?_

"Don't worry, Serenity. Your guardians know you're missing. They're already out looking for you, too bad they don't have a way of tracing you this time," someone said

_Who are you?!_ I demanded, then realized I didn't speak. I couldn't get my voice to work, this was bad.

"Don't be in such a hurry to find out who I am. The more you know, the sooner you die. Just be glad that you know nothing."

My curiosity got the best of me. _Fine, but why can't they trace me? What have you done?_

"Surely by now you've noticed your communicator is gone, as is your compact. All of your senshi items were left at you house," the woman stated.

_Shit._ I knew that was bad. Ami needed something to trace and I had nothing with me. To top it all off, my head ache was only growing._ Why do you need me? What would you gain from this?_

"Wouldn't you like to know," the woman laughed. "I shall leave you now, I'll be back in the morning."

_Wait! _It was too late. I heard a door somewhere in the darkness open and close. The woman was gone. I knew that this was only going to get worse. My friends had no way to find me, I had no way to contact them, even if just to say I'm okay. Alright, I probably wouldn't tell them I was okay. It didn't matter, I knew how hopeless my situation was. I could vaguely tell that my hands and legs were tied, I wasn't going anywhere any time soon. Every time I tried to move, pain shot through my body. _There's no point in this. It's not going to work, I need to thing of something else. There has to be a way. _

* * *

It had been a couple days since Usagi's disappearance. Mamoru and the Senshi were running out of ideas at this point. No one was sure where to look and there hadn't been any youma to interrogate. The Outers had joined the search and even called Sailor Pluto for help. Pluto knew nothing, she hadn't seen this coming. Then again, no one had.

"We're not getting anywhere," Makoto said, frustrated.

"I know. Do you think she's alright? She didn't sound too good on the phone when I talked to her the other day," Minako said quietly.

"No." Everyone looked to Mamoru for an explanation at this. "There's something I didn't tell you. Something that Usagi should have told you a long time ago."

"What's that?" Ami questioned. Michiru and Haruka had the same questioning look on their faces as well. Rei simply sat there, staring at the table.

"Usagi called Minako asking about her bag, right? Did anyone bother to look inside the bag to see why she was so desperate to get it?" Mamoru asked. Everyone shook their heads. "Usagi's hypoglycemic. She's know since before she met Luna, I only found out two years ago. With everything that had happened two years ago, she got pretty upset about everything and quit eating. She was hospitalized because her blood sugar got too low. That's why I've been bugging her about her eating habits. I have a feeling she called because she needed her kit and it was in that bag," he explained. "Minako, you said she sounded disoriented, so I'm betting that's why. She's already in bad shape and now we don't know where she is."

"Shit. So, not only has she been kidnapped with out a way to defend herself, but she's sick too?!" Rei demanded, finally looking up. "That's just great!"

"Rei…" Minako started. She stopped when she saw Rei's personal battle on her face.

"How…" Rei hesitated. She took a deep breath, held it for a moment, then spoke again. "How long do you think she'll last? I mean with her blood sugar already being low?" Rei asked, eyes on the table once again.

"There's no telling. It depends on how low it was before she was taken, if she's eaten anything since then… There's just too many variables," Ami answered.

"Worst case?" Rei asked.

"Worst case… Another day or so," Mamoru said quietly.

"That's not good enough. There has to be a way to find her," Haruka declared. Minako and Makoto agreed immediately. Rei didn't look up. She sat there for another minute or so then stood to leave.

"Rei?" Minako asked. "Where are you going?"

"Sorry. I just can't do this at the moment. I'm going back home, I need to meditate for a while. I'll call you later," Rei said.

"You going to be okay?" Minako asked, sounding concerned.

"Don't know," was Rei's answer. She then left before anyone could ask her another question. She wasn't sure how much longer she could keep this up. Not knowing where Usagi was, not knowing if she was alright was slowly killing her inside. She'd tried fire readings twenty times a day, just to come back empty handed. She'd tried everything she could think of, but nothing worked. She almost started to think someone was blocking her, but couldn't come up with a reason why. Rei knew that she had to find Usagi no matter what it took, Usagi was too special.

* * *

"Please. Give me something," Rei pleaded as she knelt by the fire for what seemed like the millionth time in the last three days. She closed her eyes and went through her normal routine, then she waited. Waited for anything, a vision, a noise, a small flash of something. Nothing. The sacred fire was no more help then it had been the last few days. After another hour she finally got up and headed to her room.

Rei sat on her floor, silently staring at a picture on her night stand. Everything she'd learned about Usagi in the last few days was racing through her mind. Her parents weren't in town and it seemed as though she had been fighting with them. Usagi had been fighting with her blood sugar the whole time they'd known each other, but none of them had ever known. The one thing that got Rei the most wasn't that Usagi kept these to herself, but that there was something she was afraid to talk to Rei about. Usagi had always told her everything. Every daydream, every nightmare, every new movie she went to see, what she had for lunch, she'd never kept anything from the raven haired miko. So why, all the sudden was she afraid to talk to her? Why didn't she come to her with this new nightmare? Why didn't she speak to anyone after the nightmare? Why had she become a complete stranger? Rei couldn't answer any of these questions, no matter how much she thought on them.

After a little while Rei felt herself slipping, she knew she was exhausted, but she did nothing to prevent sleep from coming. Soon, she was out.

'_It's so dark. Where is this place?' "Hello? Is anyone there?" Rei called out into the vast nothingness. There was no reply. She tried to go back the way she came, but found more nothingness behind her. 'How did I get here?' she asked herself. _

_She wandered around for what felt like hours, waiting to bump into something. It didn't come though. Nothing happened. None of it made any sense to her. 'I can't see a thing. Maybe some fire would help,' Rei thought. She transformed into Sailor Mars and cast a fire ball into a hand. It didn't help much, she could only see two feet around her. "Damn it. This is annoying" Rei stated._

_Rei continued to walk around in hopes of finding something. This really made no sense to her. Something was off about it though, that she knew for sure. Now, as to what was off, she had no idea._

* * *

"Minako, where are you going?" Ami asked as Minako stood up.

"I'm going to check on Rei. She really didn't look too good earlier, I just want to make sure she's okay," Minako explained while putting on her jacket.

"That's probably a good idea. I think she's been pulling away from us almost as much as Usagi has. Do you think it has anything to do with Usagi?" Makoto questioned.

"Without a doubt," Minako said instantly. "Um… crap. You didn't hear that, not from me anyway."

"What aren't you telling us, Minako?" Makoto asked curiously.

"I can't tell you. I promised Rei I wouldn't say anything. Hell, she probably wouldn't have told me if I hadn't kept pestering her the way I did. I'll call you after I talk to her, let you know how she's doing," Minako said, then turned to leave.

"Okay then," Ami said quietly.

"So, whose doing what?" Haruka asked.

"Luna and Artemis are at 'headquarters' trying to find another way to trace Usagi. Mamoru had to talk to the university in America to let them know he'll be back a few days late. We're here, Rei's doing something, not sure what, and Minako just went to find out. Anything from Setsuna?" Makoto questioned.

Michiru shook her head silently. "She said she was going to speak with Neo Queen Serenity, maybe get some idea of what's going on. There was nothing in the time gates about this," Michiru said sadly.

* * *

"Rei? Rei, where are you?" Minako yelled as she walked around the court yard. She'd already been inside, Rei wasn't there. She'd just left the fire room and was now heading to the back of the shrine grounds. Once she got to the back, she stopped. Rei was there, but didn't move. She was sitting on the ground, leaning against a cherry tree.

Minako stood there for a moment then walked to Rei's side. "Rei?" Nothing, no answer. Rei didn't even move. It was then that she noticed Rei was mumbling something. She knelt beside the miko to hear what she was saying.

"Rei?" Minako tried again. Still nothing. "She's in a trance or something. A vision maybe?"

She noticed Rei was very pale and looked confused. Every now and then her expression would change to fear or surprise, but mostly it stayed at confused. After watching Rei for a while, she called Makoto.

"Yeah? How is she?" Makoto asked through the communicator.

"I'm not sure. I found her sitting out back under a tree. She's in a trace or something. I haven't been able to snap her out of it. I'm not even sure if it was her own doing," Minako said slowly.

"You think someone got to her?" Ami asked.

"I don't know. Maybe…"

"Makoto and I are coming over now. I'll scan her when we get there, just to make sure," Ami said.

"Okay. See you in a bit," Minako said, then signed off. "Rei?" Minako said quietly, shaking Rei's shoulder. Rei didn't respond.

* * *

"_Hello? Is anyone there?" Rei asked once again. "This is useless. Where the hell am I?" Rei turned around and headed in the other direction once again. 'Hang on, that's different. Something's over there, why else would it be more difficult to go that way?' Rei thought to herself as she turned to her right. 'It actually hurts to go this way. Usagi?' _

_Rei continued to walk for what felt like forever. Some time later she noticed a very faint light just floating in the air. "What the?" Rei said aloud. "Usagi? Is that you?"_

"_Where is everyone? I want to go home."_

"_Usagi! Where are you?" Rei screamed into the darkness, now running towards the light._

"_My head hurts so much… Gomen nasai mina."_

"_Usagi, answer me! Where are you?" Rei yelled again. The light never moved but Rei felt like she wasn't getting any closer to her friend._

"_Rei, where are you? Why aren't you here to help me? You're always there when I need you… Why aren't you here?"_

_Rei suddenly stopped running. 'Usagi, can you hear me? Please answer me,' Rei thought. Maybe she could reach her friend telepathically. She'd just realized Usagi wasn't really speaking, not out loud anyway._

"_Rei? Please help me Rei!" Usagi begged._

'_Where are you? I can't help you if I can't find you.'_

"_I don't know. It's so dark here and I can't move. I'm tied up. Rei, please hurry, please. I want to get out of here. Get me out of here, please…" Usagi cried._

'_Can you see anything at all?' Rei questioned telepathically._

"_No, just black. It goes on forever." Usagi answered._

'_Well, I'm in the right place.' Rei thought. 'So what happened? We were on our way to your house with your bag. When we got there, it looked like someone had broke in.'_

"_I'm not sure what happened. I waited like Minako told me, then everything went black. When I came to, everything was still black. My head hurts so much…" Usagi trailed off._

'_Hey! You have to stay with me!' Rei yelled mentally._

"_I'm trying, but it's so hard to focus on anything."_

'_Can you pick up on anything that might give us a clue as to where you are? Sounds, smells, anything?' Rei asked, sounding a little desperate._

"_No, nothing. My ears keep popping, but that's all I've got."_

'_Usagi, just hang in there. We're going to find you. I'm not sure how at the moment, but I promise you, we'll find you,' Rei promised._

"_Okay," Usagi replied. "Gomen nasai, Rei," Usagi mumbled._

'_Usagi?' Rei questioned. Nothing. 'Shit, I lost her!'_

* * *

"Rei?" Minako asked once again. "See, nothing! She's not responding to anything," Minako explained. Ami finished running her scan on Rei while Makoto sat down on Rei's other side.

"Well, you weren't wrong," Ami said. "She didn't initiate this, but she's not fighting it either. Looks like she's just having a vision. All we can do is wait for her to-"

"Shit, I lost her!" Rei said suddenly. Minako and Makoto jumped at Rei's sudden comment.

"Rei? Are you back?" Ami questioned. Rei looked around then.

"When did you guys get here?" she asked.

"Ten minutes ago," Makoto answered. "Minako's been here for a while though. She's been trying to snap you out of your trance. Lost who?" Makoto wondered.

"Usagi," Rei replied, rubbing her eyes. "She's not doing too good. She said it was hard to focus on anything. She didn't know what happened," Rei said, answering the unasked question. "Said she waited like Minako told her, then everything went black. When she came to, everything was still black. That's where I was just now, in a vast nothingness. It was weird, I mean… I don't know how to explain it. There was nothing there, no light, no sounds, nothing. It has to be youma, I mean, there's nothing like that on Earth so who else would be able to take her to another dimension?" Rei questioned.

"You're right. That's not a good thing though. With the crystal in our possession rather than hers, we can't pinpoint where she is. Being in another dimension only makes it harder to locate her," Ami said dejectedly. "How did you get her in the first place?"

"I'm not sure, to be honest. I was sitting in my room thinking about how much she's changed lately and how she used to tell us everything. Then I'm out here with you three around me," Rei said slowly. "I could have sworn that I kept hearing her say sorry. She didn't say what for, just 'gomen nasai.' She said it to me again before I lost her."

"That doesn't sound good," Makoto said.

"No, it doesn't," Ami agreed.

"Ami! Ami!" All four girls looked toward the voice to find Luna and Artemis running towards them. "I might have something!" Luna said breathlessly.

"What?" Ami questioned.

"The silver crystal," Luna started.

"Setsuna came back and told us the Neo Queen Serenity said that if she was ever in real danger and didn't have the crystal, the crystal would tell us. The crystal protects her even when she doesn't have it with her," Artemis jumped in. "It'll try to help us find her, to protect her."

"How can we use it though?" Minako questioned.

"We hook the crystal up to Ami's mini computer," Luna replied, then gave the crystal to Ami.

"Will it work?" Rei asked.

"Setsuna assured us it would," Artemis replied. "Why? What's wrong?" Rei didn't answer, instead she started at the ground.

"Rei spoke with Usagi through a vision. She's not doing too well. We've found that she's in another dimension and that Usagi doesn't know what happened," Minako replied.

"Yeah, it sounded like she either collapsed or was knocked out," Makoto said while watching Ami and Luna hook the crystal up to the computer.

"Hmm…" Luna mumbled. "Well, lets find her."

* * *

I could feel myself losing grip on consciousness, I struggled to stay awake. I wanted so much to sleep, but wanted to go home even more. I forced myself to focus again. I wanted to get Rei back, it was no use, she was gone.

"Come back soon, Rei," I said quietly. It took all the focus I had just to speak out loud. I tried again to move, still nothing. _Please, there has to be something I can do to help from here. They don't have anything to trace to find me. The crystal…_ I thought. _Who said it has to be with me? Silver crystal, please help me!_ I begged silently, then lost consciousness.

* * *

**End! Okay, not really. It just seemed like a good place to end the chapter. If you don't like cliff hangers, then you're probably not too happy with me at the moment… Hey, at least you got something! Right? Any ideas on what's going on yet?? Let me know what you thought! Till next time guys! Laters.**


	6. Tip of the Iceburg

**Wow, I can't believe how long it's been since I've updated this. I'm so sorry it took me so long. Well, I'm finally back with another chapter and hopefully the next one won't take as long. I still don't own the characters... What a shame. Well, let me know what you think.  


* * *

  
**

"Hey, come on, hurry," Minako said hurriedly.

"What's up Minako?" Makoto asked, looking up from the couch.

"Ami told me to come get you two, she's got something."

"Did she find Usagi?" Rei questioned, jumping to her feet.

"I don't know. I think she found something that'll help us find her though," Minako answered.

"It's about time," Rei said quietly. "We're running out of time. I can feel it."

"Then lets go see what Ami's got for us," Makoto replied.

* * *

_Come on… It keeps moving around… Just lock on already! Come on, almost got it…_

"Yes!" Ami cried.

"You got something, didn't you?" Minako asked as she walked into Ami's bedroom. Makoto and Rei followed her in.

"Yes, it finally locked on to a single dimension. Now we can teleport there and start searching for Usagi."

"You're sure it's the right dimension?" Makoto asked hesitantly.

"Yes. At first it kept jumping around, the signal wouldn't stay in the same place for more than a few seconds. Then I kept finding sub signals, this one is alone. It's the main signal," Ami explained. "That and the crystal just started glowing."

"That's a good sign," Luna said, walking into the room, followed by Artemis. "That means that the signal is coming from Usagi herself. She's the only one that can make the crystal react like that."

"So lets go," Rei said.

"I agree," Makoto said, then stopped. "So how exactly are we doing this?"

"We won't teleport exactly. We have to open a doorway to that dimension and walk through it. Just like when we went to the future with Chibi-Usa," Ami explained.

"Got it. So, where are we opening this doorway?" Minako asked.

"We can do that at the temple," Rei offered.

"Are you sure?" Artemis asked.

"Yeah," Rei said quietly.

-

"Okay, lets do this thing," Minako said.

"Yeah," Rei agreed.

"Venus Crystal Power"

"Mars Crystal Power"

"Jupiter Crystal Power"

"Mercury Crystal Power"

…

… …

… … …

"Why didn't it work?" Minako asked. Rei mumbled something under her breath, throwing her hands into the air. Makoto just stood there looking at Ami for an answer.

"I'm not sure," Ami answered softly. "It should have worked…I don't understand." Ami started pushing buttons on her computer.

"Guess it's time to think of another plan," Rei said, then went inside. After a few seconds, the others followed her into the temple.

They all walked towards Rei's room in silence, trying to figure out what went wrong. Rei had almost made it to her room when the phone started ringing.

"I'll meet you guys in there in a minute," Rei said. She stopped by the phone and answered it. "Hello, Rei-"

"Rei?"

"Us- Usagi?!" Rei stuttered causing her friends to come to the door way. "Is that you?"

"Rei, I'm not sure what happened. I'm so confused right now," Usagi said shakily.

"Where are you?" Rei questioned quickly.

"If I'm not seeing things, I'm home," she replied. Rei paused a moment to check the caller id. It was in fact Usagi's house phone that the call was coming from.

"Are you alright?" Rei asked.

"I…" Usagi started. "I'm not sure…"

"Stay there, we're on our way," Rei said. Usagi said she'd stay put before Rei hung up the phone. "She's home now. We need to get going before something else happens," Rei stated. Within minutes, all four girls were ready to teleport to Usagi's house.

* * *

The four teens appeared inside Usagi's house just minutes after Rei got off the phone with their blonde friend. The place looked the same as it did a few days earlier when they'd noticed her missing. Just like the last time, Usagi was no where in sight.

"Usagi? Are you here?" Makoto asked aloud.

"Usagi?" Minako called out.

Everyone except for Rei started to look around the house. Rei just stood there, she'd closed her eyes and didn't move. Ami looked curiously at her for a moment then continued her search.

_Usagi? Where are you? We're at your house right now._

"_Rei?"_

_Yeah, it's me. Now, where are you?_

"_Upstairs. I heard someone downstairs but I'm too tired to move. I don't have the strength to do anything. It took all I had just to call you on the phone…"_

_Where upstairs, Usagi?_

"_Umm… on the bottom of the stairs that go to the attic. I'm so tired, Rei…"_

_Just hang in there a little longer, okay?_

"_I'll try."_

"Minako?" Rei asked, slowly opening her eyes.

"What is it, Rei?" Minako asked, walking towards Rei. Makoto and Ami stopped what they were doing as well.

"Where did you put that bag Usagi had asked for?"

"Over there," Minako said, pointing to the TV stand. Rei quickly walked over and picked up the bag. She opened it looking for the kit that Mamoru had spoke of, only looking up once she'd found it.

"You know how to us this, Ami?" Rei questioned as she started walking away.

"Yes, I-"

"Good. Lets go." Rei hadn't given anyone time to ask questions. The only thought on her mind was that Usagi wasn't going to last much longer without their help. "Someone needs to get a glass of… Orange juice should work, and bring it upstairs."

"Rei, what's-"

"Just do it, please, Makoto!" Rei snapped, the weariness coming through in her voice. "Please," she repeated, calmer this time, all the while going up the stairs towards Usagi.

"Okay. I'll go find some orange juice. Where am I taking it?" Makoto asked.

"Attic stairs. Thanks Makoto."

Makoto quickly left the group while Minako and Ami quietly followed Rei. Ami figured Rei knew something. Minako knew why Rei was on edge, but wouldn't say anything.

"Hang in there just a little longer, Usagi," Rei whispered. Ami and Minako immediately looked at Rei, having heard what she said. They cast quick glances at each other, then back at Rei when she stopped walking.

"Usagi?" Rei called out.

"Here," they heard a faint reply. Rei ran towards the voice without hesitating. She whipped around the corner then fell to her knees.

"Usagi!" Rei cried, hugging Usagi gently. "You're okay?" she asked, looking over her friend. Usagi was extremely pale and shaking slightly, her eyes were dull and sunken in. She immediately waved Ami over to do her thing with Usagi's blood testing kit. Within seconds, they heard Makoto coming up with the juice.

"Over here Makoto," Minako said.

"Hey, I've got the- Usagi!" Makoto cried, almost dropping the glass in her hands. Rei quickly grabbed the glass and shoved it into Usagi's thin hands.

"Drink, now," Rei stated. When Usagi didn't move, she spoke again. "You don't drink that and I'll pour it down your throat for you." Rei said, the worry and fear apparent on her face.

"Rei," Ami warned, then turned her attention to Usagi. "Drink as much as you can without getting sick, okay?" Usagi nodded.

Usagi remained quiet for a few minutes while she watched Ami test her blood for her. She tried a few times, then finally got her question out. "How bad is it, Ami?" Usagi asked, her voice sounding weak.

"We should take you to the hospital." was Ami's answer. She thought for a moment, then spoke again. "Should I call my mom to come over?"

"If you think I really need a doctor," Usagi whispered.

"We'll wait a little while then. Can you stand?" Ami asked. Usagi thought for a moment then shook her head. "Okay. Makoto, can you pick her up? We're going to take her to her room. She needs to rest."

"Sure," Makoto replied. Rei reluctantly stepped aside so Makoto could get to Usagi.

"She'll be okay," Minako whispered into Rei's ear. Rei couldn't bring herself to do anything other than nod. After another minute or two, she led Rei to Usagi's room. Once inside, Rei paled once more. Usagi looked so helpless lying there.

"Rei, are you alright?" Makoto questioned, seeing the blank expression on the miko's face. When Rei didn't answer, she glanced at Ami, then Minako. "You know what's bothering her, don't you Minako?" Makoto asked.

"Yes." Minako cast a quick glance at Rei, waiting for her to tell her to shut up. It never came.

"What is it?" Ami inquired.

"I already said that I couldn't tell you. I promised her I wouldn't say anything," Minako said sadly.

Rei eventually sat down across from the blonde's bed, away from her friends. She didn't want to talk. If anything she wanted to run, to cry. She wouldn't though. Too many people around and Usagi was there. The girl always knew when Rei was about to lose it. She wouldn't break now cause Usagi needed her, but she needed Usagi to wake up, to talk, laugh. She knew the blonde wouldn't be up anytime soon though. She was sick, Ami had said so herself, low blood sugar, exhaustion.

That took Rei to another thought. What were those nightmares about? What made Usagi so afraid to talk about them, to Rei especially? Rei's attention was brought back to the room when Mamoru came in.

"How bad?" he asked Ami, his gaze upon Usagi.

"She should be in a hospital," Ami started. "My mom said she'd come by when her shift is over."

"Good," he mumbled.

Rei listened for a little while longer while they talked. She eventually went back to her thoughts, unaware of the two sets of eyes watching her. Makoto knew something was going on, but couldn't for the life of her figure out what that was. She also knew that Minako knew something, but they was no telling what that was.

Minako was keeping an eye on Rei for another reason. She knew what Rei was thinking, and her heart broke for her friend. She wanted more than anything to convince Rei that everything would be alright. That Usagi would tell them everything once she was rested, but she couldn't do that. She honestly wasn't sure Usagi would tell them anything. Ever.

After an hour or so, a phone went off. It took Minako a few moments to realize it was the house phone. She quickly rushed down the hall to answer it, not knowing why.

"Hello, Tsukino residence," Minako said into the phone, slowly making her way back to Usagi's room.

"Is Ikuko there?" a man asked. Minako knew him as Mr. Tsukino.

"No, she not Mr-"

"I guess that means Usagi hasn't changed her mind about a damn thing then."

"Changed her mind about what?" Minako asked, curious now.

"You should know, you're around her everyday. It's so obvious, I don't know how we missed it. Once she started hanging around the four of you, she changed," he accused.

"You knew about the senshi?" Minako asked, taking a stab in the dark.

"Oh, she told us about that, once we made her tell us why she and Mamoru broke up. No daughter of mine… I can't believe she fell in love with that _girl_…"

Minako's eyebrows immediately disappeared beneath her bangs. Before she could question him further, he'd hung up on her. Minako knew he was right, it was obvious. How come _**she**_ hadn't noticed?

She finally set down the phone as she walked back into Usagi's room. She didn't notice the looks she received when she returned. All she noticed were the emotions flooding from the sleeping blonde, her face immediately saddened.

"Oh Usagi…" she said quietly as she went to the bedside. "You could have come to me. You could have told me about this."

"Who was on the phone, Minako?" Ami asked.

"Her father," Minako whispered now.

"What did he tell you?" Mamoru questioned.

"Why you two broke up, and that they've pretty much disowned her," Minako answered. He only nodded.

"They what?!" Makoto demanded.

"So now you know why I didn't say anything," he stated after a minute. "Did he tell you who?"

"He didn't have to," Minako said quietly. She thought for a moment before speaking again. "The nightmares involve _**her**_, don't they?"

"I don't know. She only told me she was having them, not what they were about. She did say that they scared her enough that she was afraid to go back to sleep," he replied, knowing which her Minako had meant. He then noticed that Rei was paying attention again. "That's my thought though."

"Yeah, it would make sense. It would explain why she wouldn't talk to any of us about her nightmares, and probably her loss of appetite," Minako said, avoiding Rei's questioning gaze. She turned her focus back to Usagi, feeling the loneliness and fear emitting from her for the first time since they'd met.

"Minako?"

"Yes, Mamoru?"

"She's been through hell already because of this. Can you tell me just how strongly she feels about this?"

"With her whole heart, Mamoru," she answered after a minute. "There's not a trace of doubt in her heart or mind, just fear, but that's true for both of then," Minako confided, hoping no one other than Mamoru caught on.

"I'll admit, I did wonder about her too," he said with the faintest of smiles.

"I can't believe it took her father saying something for me to see through her. She hid it so well, but now it just looks like she wanted someone to find out. Like she was tired of keeping it to herself."

"Or she'd given up," Luna said, walking into the room, Artemis at her heels.

"Luna?" Mamoru questioned.

"I know a few of her secrets. The person her heart lies with would be one of them," she revealed.

"How long have you known?" Mamoru questioned.

"I first noticed it when they were fighting the heart snatchers. I didn't really believe it until after she defeated Galaxia," Luna said, jumping onto Usagi's bed. "However, I didn't know she was having nightmares again until you guys told me."

"Again?" Rei asked, finally finding her voice.

"Yes, again. The last time she had nightmares was over two years ago, right after Galaxia. She's had nightmares after every major battle, every close call. She good at brushing it off and acting like it doesn't affect her when she's around everyone. Once she's alone though…"

"How come she never said anything?" Makoto questioned.

"She doesn't want us to worry about her," Artemis said simply.

"So what made you believe it after Galaxia?" Mamoru asked Luna.

"The nightmares afterwards. The were the worst she'd ever had. She'd always wake up terrified that she'd failed. That the person she loved most was gone because of something she did or didn't do. She actually get up in the middle of the night and walk to that person's house just to make sure it was a nightmare. Then she'd come back and cry till the morning, or until she fell asleep again," Luna explained.

Mamoru's eyes grew wider as Luna had explained. He'd never known about those nightmares. Minako only looked sadder as she continued to watch Usagi. Out of the corner of her eyes, she watched Rei. She appeared to be deep in thought again, no doubt wondering why Usagi didn't go to her then either. Minako knew that the nightmares Usagi had after Galaxia had to have been bad. Rei had died in Usagi's arms while she begged Rei not to leave her alone.

After that, the room grew quiet. Mamoru left a little while later to meet up with a few old friends, while Rei tried to meditate. Makoto went downstairs to make some dinner, Ami went to help, Minako found a manga to read while the cats slept. Rei continued to keep her eyes on Usagi when her meditation failed, then would try again to prevent prodding from Minako. She didn't want to talk right now, she just needed to think.

**

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End chapter.**


	7. I'm Sorry

**Eh, a short one, but it's an update. Still own nothing.

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"What do you want from me?" Usagi screamed, tears streaming down her face.

"Same thing as every other 'bad guy.' You, out of the picture," the woman's voice said just above a whisper. The way she spoke made Usagi's skin crawl. Then after a few moments of silence, Rei appeared in front of her.

"Why'd you bring me here, you baka?"

"I didn't…" Usagi whispered. "The youma did."

"Yeah, sure," Rei said, rolling her eyes. "I'm going home."

"No! Don't!" Usagi screamed once more. "Can't you see her? She's right there!" she yelled, pointing in the distance behind Rei.

* * *

"When do you think she'll come to?" Minako asked Ami after an hour. Ami pushed a few buttons on her computer before answering.

"I'm not sure," Ami said quietly, closing her computer and setting it aside. "My computer isn't telling me anything either. I'm thinking of calling my mom again."

"You know, this whole thing just doesn't make sense," Makoto stated. "Who is this youma that's after Usagi? Why Usagi and not any or all of us? Why did they bring her back?"

"I'm not sure," Minako said quietly.

"I think all we can do it wait for Usagi to wake up and see what she knows," Ami replied.

"Well, I'm going to go get a drink," Makoto said, standing up.

"No! Don't!"

Six sets of eyes immediately went to the bed. At first none of them were sure that Usagi _**had**_ said anything. She wasn't moving, hadn't since she'd fallen asleep.

"Don't go!" Usagi suddenly screamed again. "She'll kill you!"

"She's having another one!" Minako exclaimed, rushing to the bedside. "Usagi, wake up!"

"No, please don't go," Usagi said quietly. "Don't make me watch you die again. Please…" she begged in the saddest voice any of them had ever heard from her.

"It's one of us, isn't it?" Makoto asked. "I mean that she's in love with."

"You didn't know that?" Ami asked, sounding amazed.

"You knew?" Minako demanded, spinning around to look at Ami.

"I had my suspicions. I know it's one of us and I'm pretty sure I know which one, but she wouldn't tell me. She told me it didn't matter because her heart was already taken and that she didn't have a chance," Ami said quietly.

"Poor Usagi," Minako whispered, turning her attention back to the blonde in bed. She was tossing around slightly, trying to fight off her nightmare. They watched in silence for a few minutes until Usagi quit moving. Then, without warning, Usagi sat up so suddenly, she knocked Luna off the bed.

"NO!!!" she screamed.

"Usagi!" Minako exclaimed, engulfing Usagi in a hug. "Shhh. It's okay, it was just a bad dream," she whispered into Usagi's ear. "Rei's okay, she's not hurt."

"What did you say?" Usagi demanded, pulling away from the hug, all the color gone from her face. She stared at Minako in disbelief as she waited for her to repeat herself.

"It's okay. Mamoru didn't say anything. Your father called a while ago and filled in a few blanks," she explained. "I didn't say anything either."

"Make them stop, please. Make them stop," Usagi pleaded, burring her face in Minako's shoulder. "I don't want to see them anymore, Minako. They want her dead. She said they'd get rid of her to get to me," she cried, unaware of everyone else in the room.

"Who said that?" Minako asked worriedly.

"The demon lady, she's too strong to be a youma. Same lady that was talking to me in the dark place. She told me then, the more I knew, the sooner I'd die," Usagi said between sniffles. "I couldn't help it, I had to ask questions. She'll kill her… I can't watch that again. I can't."

"Usagi, what have your nightmares been about?" Minako asked, afraid of the answer she knew would come.

"I don't want to sleep anymore…"

"Usagi," Minako spoke softly.

Usagi took a deep breath before answering this time. "Every time I close my eyes for too long, I see all the senshi getting hurt, because of me. That woman saves _**her**_ for last, then kills her right in front of me. It's a little different every time, the method. At your house they… They… Oh Kami, she's going to die because of me!" Usagi cried once again, but this cry was new to them. She sounded so hopeless, defeated. All Minako could do was hug her tighter. Within seconds, the remaining three senshi were on the bed, hugging Usagi as well. Usagi was too far gone at the moment to notice.

Rei sat there hugging Usagi as though her life depended on it, her emotions chasing themselves around her mind. She wanted so much to ask Usagi who was being killed in the nightmares, but at the same time, she didn't want to know. She didn't want to find that she was the reason the blonde was in so much pain.

Minako wanted to tell Usagi that everything would be okay. That she could talk to Rei about her fears and that Rei would understand. But, that would mean breaking her promise to Rei. Would Rei's anger be worth it if it meant that Usagi could talk to them openly again? She wanted to say it was, but would Rei agree? The look on Rei's face at the moment told her now wasn't the time.

What was it Usagi was going to say? Something about the nightmare she'd had almost a week ago. Whatever happened to Rei must have been bad. Really bad. Minako prayed silently that whatever it was would never happen. For everyone's sake.

"We'll figure something out, okay?" Makoto assured, causing Usagi to look up. She looked around her, then gave her friends a watery smile.

"I should have known you wouldn't get angry, that you'd want to help," Usagi said softly.

"Yeah, you should have," Rei stated. Usagi immediately looked away while the other three glared at Rei. Makoto was the first to notice the tears in Rei's eyes.

"Rei…" she started, but before Makoto could say more, Rei got up and left.

"I knew she'd be mad. I always tell her when something's wrong," Usagi whispered, trying not to cry again.

"I don't think she's mad, Usagi," Minako said. "Confused, yes, but not angry. I think she's more scared than anything right now though."

"Nice try Minako, but Rei doesn't get scared," Usagi said sadly.

"She does when it involves you," Ami said, finally speaking up, immediately grabbing Usagi's attention. "Those few days you were missing, she hardly spoke, not even to us."

"She's right. Rei was at the sacred fire almost all day, everyday, just trying to get something that would help us find you," Minako said. "She almost lost it when we were talking with Mamoru. He was the one that told us you were hypoglycemic. She asked him for a worst case scenario…"

"Let's just say she's taking this pretty hard," Makoto finished when she saw the guilt forming in Usagi's eyes.

"That's part of why I never said anything to her about the things that have happened over the past few years," Usagi confided. "She's so protective of me, more so that any of you, and I'm including Haruka in that. I didn't want Rei to blame herself for my problems."

"Usagi, she-"

"Minako, you and I both know that if she could find a way to blame any of my unhappiness or pain on herself, she would. It was just easier to deal with it alone then to watch her beat herself up for thinking she failed me in some way. If anyone failed, it would be me," Usagi said, the last part was just above a whisper.

"You? What makes you say that?" Ami demanded before Luna could.

"How many times have you died for me? Because of me? How many times were you all injured because I didn't want to fight? Or because I fell into a trap? Or, hell, because I was late?" Usagi asked, her voice raising slightly. "How many times have you fallen into a trap because you followed stupid me, who didn't believe it was a trap? I've let you guys down over and over and over. I put you guys in danger constantly for jumping the gun, or being late. I'm supposed to be the leader, yet half the time I act like a rookie side-kick, but you guys still stand by me. I wasn't about to throw my personal demons at you too," she said, now studying her comforter.

"Oh, Usagi," Minako whispered. "If we _**ever**_ gave you the impression that we honestly thought you were a failure, then _**we're**_ the one's who failed."

"Usagi, you're a good fighter, you just don't like to fight," Artemis spoke. "You've always pulled through when you were needed. You know when you _**can't**_ back down, when you have to fight. Then you still put everyone else ahead of your own safety."

"He's right, Usa," a new voice said. Usagi glanced up for a moment, then continued to stare a hole in her bedding. "You haven't failed any of us. Scared the living shit out of us from time to time, yes. Don't ever let yourself believe that you've let any of us down," Haruka said, standing in the doorway. Michiru and Setsuna right behind her.

"Easier said than done," Usagi spoke quietly.

"I'll be back in a few minutes," Setsuna said, excusing herself.

"Wasn't she the one that didn't want to wait till later?" Haruka asked Michiru.

* * *

"Rei."

"Go away," Rei said, trying to hide the fact that she'd started crying.

"I'm not leaving until we talk, Rei," Setsuna said, sitting down next to the raven haired teen.

"What do you want?"

"I know it's hard for you right now, but you need to push your personal feeling aside. She needs you right now, more than you know. Probably even more than she herself knows. She didn't want you to worry about her," Setsuna said, answering Rei's question before she could voice it. "She wants all of you to think she's strong enough to take care of herself. That she's not as fragile as we make her out to be. She knew if she told you about certain things that you'd find a way to take the blame for them and that's not what she wanted. She needs someone to really listen to her right now, not someone to judge her actions."

Rei sighed loudly. "I guess you're right. She's probably mad at me for walking out, isn't she?"

"Actually, she thinks you're mad at her." Rei's eyes widened at that, but she heard more voices from down the hall before she could say anything else.

"Get back here, would you? We'll go get Rei," Minako was heard.

"Come on, Usagi. You should be in bed still," Haruka spoke this time. "I mean it. Don't make me drag you back to bed!"

"Don't," Usagi said, the command very clear, even if her voice was still on the weak end.

"What's going on?" Setsuna asked, standing up as Ami appeared around the corner.

"I hoped you hadn't gone too far," she said once she spotted Rei. "Usagi said Rei needed her right now and got out of bed. She should be in bed, resting still but she's determined to find Rei and talk to her first," Ami explained.

"She what?" Rei demanded, jumping to her feet. "Usagi! Get you ass back up those stairs and back into that bed before _**I**_ drag you back up there!" Rei said loudly, walking toward the stairs.

"Rei," Usagi said, seeing Rei.

Rei got ready to say something rude, then noticed the look in Usagi's eyes. Usagi knew. She always knew, no matter how much Rei tried to hide it from her. "Fine, we'll talk, but you're still going back to bed," she said, giving in, then she looked at everyone else.

"Go ahead Rei, we'll stay down here," Minako said softly. Rei only nodded then lead Usagi back up the stairs.

* * *

"So what' was so important that you had to come find me?" Rei asked once Usagi was back in bed and under the covers.

"I hurt you, I'm sorry," Usagi started.

"Usagi, you don't-"

"No, let me finish," Usagi said. "I knew you'd get upset once you learned that I was keeping things from you, but you have to understand why. I knew telling you would only hurt you more, and I couldn't do that," she said, tears making themselves known in her eyes as her voice broke. "I didn't want to hurt you, that's the last thing I wanted to do. I ended up hurting you anyway."

"Usagi, I know you have your reasons. It doesn't make it any easier though," Rei said, sitting on the edge of the bed now.

"I want to tell you everything, I really do, but now's not the time," Usagi whispered, looking anywhere but at Rei. "There's a festival tomorrow. I'll explain a few things to you after the festival, can you wait till then?"

"Yeah, I'll wait till then," Rei said softly.

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**End chapter**

**I can be so mean with a really good gliffie here, but with my update rate right now, I'll be nice. Please review!**

**MoonlightFairie  
**


	8. The Festival

**A concert.**

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"Hey, there you are, Usagi. I've been looking everywhere for you," Rei said as she approached me.

"I've been right here," I said quietly.

"Usagi, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," I said.

"I've noticed for a while that it seems like there's something you've been wanting to say to me, something other than your nightmares and stuff," she said slowly. I could tell she was trying to judge my reaction to her statement. "So… What's on your mind?"

"Hey Rei!" Makoto hollered, appearing out of nowhere.

"What Makoto?" Rei grumbled.

"What's this I hear about you being in love with someone?" Makoto questioned breathlessly. "Do we know him?" Ami and Minako had just come up behind her. _She's in love with someone? _

"That's not any of your business," Rei said with a laugh, then sobered when she looked at me once again. "Can you give us a few minutes?" Rei asked. Minako seemed to understand and took Ami and Makoto with her.

"Usagi? Do you want to talk about it?" she started again. I wanted so much to tell her yes, I really did.

"Sorry Rei, but your senses are off. There's nothing that I've been wanting to talk to you about." That single lie had to have been the hardest one yet.

"You're sure? Not even the nightmares?" she pressed.

"Nope. The nightmares are pretty much out in the open now and you already know about the hypoglycemia. What else would there be?" I asked.

"You tell me," Rei said, watching me now.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I said. "I have to get going though. I told Michiru I'd meet up with them before their performance."

"Usagi!" Rei spoke up. "You'd tell me if something was wrong, right? If there was something that was really bothering you?"

"Honestly?" I asked. She nodded slightly. "No, probably not." With that I turned around and walked off without looking back. I didn't want to see the disappointment that was surely on her face I could never tell her now; it'll stay hidden like it should be.

* * *

"I hope everyone is having fun tonight!" the announcer said happily. "I'd like to bring Haruka and Michiru back to the stage!" he yelled, stretching his arm towards the curtains.

"Thanks everyone!" Michiru said once she was at the mic. Haruka stood silently next to her, a cocky grin in place. "We have a very special surprise for everyone here tonight. We're bringing one of our very good friends out here with us for the last two songs. She actually wrote the two songs we're about to perform for you," Michiru said happily.

"I'd like to introduce you to our very own, Usagi Tsukino!" Haruka yelled. I could see my friends from back stage, the shock on their faces was hilarious, yet I couldn't bring myself to laugh. I could only think about my semi-talk earlier with Rei. I would have gone home already but I made Haruka and Michiru promise that they wouldn't let me back out of this.

Haruka and Michiru both waved for me to come out when I didn't move. I took a deep breathe and then made my way to the mic.

Another deep breath. "Hello everyone, I'm Usagi. This song means a lot to me so I hope everyone likes it," I said. I took this moment to steady my breathing as the music started, then waited for my cue.

"How long can we wait here to say goodbye?  
the words once they're spoken,  
are words that we can't take  
back to where we were before  
things got in the way  
life gets so confusing  
when you know what you're losing"

"_You, me, why can't we see that there's _

_more to love than we'll ever know?  
sometimes you're closer when you're letting go  
i wish the best for you  
i wish the best… for you"_

"We'll both regret the hurting  
that we will do.  
You'll learn to forget me,  
and I'll try, I'll try to forget"

"_You, me, why can't we see that there's _

_more to love than we'll ever know? _

_sometimes you're closer your when you're letting go  
i wish the best for you  
i wish the best…"_

"If you ever need a place that you can run to,  
ill be here,  
ill be here."

"_You, me, why can't we see that there's _

_more to love than we'll ever know?  
sometimes you're closer when you're letting go  
i wish the best for you  
i wish the best…_

_for you"_

I stood there, catching my breath while listening to the applause. I never imagined that I would really be up here, singing my heart out for the world. It felt good though, getting that off my chest. I know no one knew my true meaning behind the song, and that was fine with me. All that mattered was that I went through with it. Now, if I could make it through this next one…

"Thanks so much," I said. "This next song was a request that I couldn't say no to. Someone I admire asked if I would sing a song to her friends for her, so this one is from Sailor Moon to all her Senshi," I announced. I could feel Haruka and Michiru watching me and I was very much aware of the five pairs of curious eyes in the audience. I wanted so much to see what Rei was thinking, but I knew if I looked now, I'd lose my nerve. It was too late to back out now. I finally cast a glance at Haruka when the music didn't start. Michiru elbowed her for me and they both started playing. I waited for my opening, then started singing once again.

"What I thought wasn't mine,

in the light

Was a one of a kind,

a precious pearl

When I wanted to cry,

I couldn't cause I

wasn't allowed."

"_Gomen nasai for everything_

_Gomen nasai I know I let you down_

_Gomen nasai till the end_

_I never needed a friend,_

_like I do now"_

"What I thought was a null

So innocent,

Was a delicate doll

Of porcelain

When I wanted to call you

And ask you for help

I stopped myself"

"_Gomen nasai for everything_

_Gomen nasai I know I let you down_

_Gomen nasai till the end_

_I never needed a friend,_

_like I do now"_

It was time for the instrumental solo. I took this time to let my eyes wander through the audience. I saw a lot of watery eyes, lots of sad faces. At least the meaning of the song was getting across. Then I looked at my friends, my senshi, all except for Rei; I knew that they had received the full meaning already. My only wish was that they didn't look so disappointed.

"What I thought was a dream

A mirage,

was as real as it seemed

A privilege

When I wanted to tell you

I made a mistake

I walked away"

"_Gomen nasai for everything_

_Gomen nasai (gomen nasai) _

_Gomen nasai, I never needed a friend,_

_like I do now"_

"_Gomen nasai I let you down_

_Gomen nasai (gomen nasai)_

_Gomen nasai till the end_

_I never needed a friend…"_

I looked at Rei now for lack of anywhere else to look. The sadness in her eyes just about killed me.

"_Like I do now"_

The applause started as soon as I sang the last note. I didn't wait, couldn't wait, I felt the tears coming and wanted nothing more than to run. So, that's what I did, I ran. I dropped the mic and took off. I heard all my friends hollering for me to come back, to stop, but I couldn't face them right now. I didn't want to look at anyone. So, I ran.

* * *

Rei sat there quietly listening to the song Usagi was currently singing. It was the saddest song Rei could ever image her blonde friend singing, much less writing. She'd been watching Usagi closely the entire time and noticed that the blonde wouldn't look at her.

_Why is she apologizing? She hasn't done anything wrong! This is all wrong, if anyone should be apologizing, it's us! _Rei argued with herself.

"Gomen nasai till the end. I never needed a friend…" Usagi's singing paused, her eyes finally resting on Rei. _It's about time she looked at me! Wait…why does she look like she's in pain?_

"Like I do now," Usagi sang the last note so it was barely heard. She immediately dropped the microphone and ran off the stage without looking back.

"Wait! Usagi!" Rei screamed, jumping to her feet. Mamoru and the senshi (inners and outers both) followed Rei's lead.

_I don't get it! She was singing it to all of us, but it seemed like the last verse was directed at me… I know there was something that she wanted to tell me. What are you hiding, Usagi?! Why do I feel like I should already know? Dammit, where'd she go?!_ Rei thought to herself once she could no longer see Usagi.

"Where'd she go?" Ami asked.

"I don't know! Did anyone see where she went?" Haruka demanded.

"We're gonna have to split up. It's the only way we'll find her. I knew something was bothering her," Rei admitted. "Wait, she practiced these songs with you two," Rei said, spinning to face Haruka and Michiru. "Why is it you both look just as surprised as the rest of us?"

"We played the music for that one, that's it. She never sang that one around us," Michiru stated.

Rei got ready to question them some more, but Minako interrupted her. "Later Rei, right now we need to find Usagi. Everything else can wait."

* * *

"I can't believe I actually did that!" I cried. I wanted to stop running, just for a minute. My chest felt as though it were on fire, my throat as though I had just swallowed a hand full of needles, but I ran on. I couldn't stop; they might catch up with me if I did. I heard Haruka and Michiru run after me when I bolted. I didn't have a single doubt in my mind that the others were trying to find me as well. Stopping was simply out of the question.

"Please don't hate me," I pleaded silently. I didn't know what I'd do if they hated me now. I couldn't really blame them though.

I could see the shore line ahead of me now, could smell the salt. I knew where I was headed now and that worried me. I was going back to the pier, the same pier that still worried Mamoru to this day. I wouldn't do anything, I knew this, but the memory of wanting it all to end was still there.

I slowed to a jog, then to just walking as I neared the pier. I had always been able to think here, but something was different this time. I couldn't place it, but something was different. Wrong. _What could it-_

"Usagi! There you are!" I heard Minako exclaim from behind me. I spun around to face her. I watched her walk toward me slowly, like you would a frightened animal or child. That's when it hit me. _Oh shit! No!_

"Minako, you have to go! Now!" I yelled. I saw the concern switch to confusion.

"What are you talking about?" she asked. That's when I noticed the others coming up behind her. My eyes locked on Rei. I panicked.

"Minako, get her out of here!" I screamed. _Please! Not here, not now!_ "Hurry! Get her out of here!"

"Usagi, what's wrong?" Minako asked, looking more than a little startled. Then it hit her too. "Here?" she asked, growing pale.

"Yes!" I yelled, fear taking over. "Please Minako, hurry!"

Minako turned quickly and headed straight for Rei. I could see the others were confused. I didn't care, as long as she got Rei away from here…

"Too late," I whispered once I felt that same eerie cold draft from my nightmares. I felt the barrier drop around us and knew no one was leaving. This is how every nightmare started. This is where I watched Rei die every night for the past few months. There was no stopping it now.

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**Wow! So I finally posted something that answers some questions. And left another cliff hanger, sorry guys. Please review and let me know what you think about this one! Laters!**

**MoonlightFairie  
**


	9. Begining of the End?

**Hey there everyone. Sorry it took so long to get... Anything for this one out. I'm kinda stuck on this one. I've completely lost my train of thought for this story, but I'm still working on adding to it. I had planned on a longer chapter, but this is better than nothing. So, here goes.**

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Minako had just gotten to Rei's side and quickly grabbed her wrist. She immediately started pulling her away, it was the only time she's seen that amount of fear in Usagi's eyes. She had to do this one thing for Usagi, no matter how pissed Rei got at her for it.

"Minako, what are you doing?" Rei demanded.

"You can't be here. I have to get you out of here before it's too late," Minako said almost desperately, avoiding Rei's eyes.

"What _are_ you going on about?" Rei questioned, fear slowly building up inside her.

"Just come on, please," Minako begged, then frozen when she felt it. She knew there was no leaving now, she felt the barrier fall around them. She spun to face Usagi and saw the despair wash over the blonde's face.

"Shit," Minako muttered.

"What the hell is going on?" Rei demanded once again, this time the fear was clear in her voice.

"Usagi's nightmare…" was all Minako said. The senshi turned to look at Minako, and Rei paled. She understood now. It _**had**_ been her, _**she**_ was the one that had died in Usagi's nightmares. Here they were, chasing Usagi cause they were worried about her, and Usagi was only trying to protect Rei from the evils that only she had seen.

"No wonder she wouldn't talk to me about them," Rei whispered, staring at her feet now.

Minako looked at the senshi around her, then glanced at Usagi who was scanning the area. "We have to do what we can to keep her nightmare from coming true. Everyone will protect Rei," Minako ordered, then watched Usagi again. She was still scanning the area, her form tense, waiting for the first attack. Usagi said something that they couldn't make out; then without warning, Usagi was Sailor Moon and she was charging towards… _them?!_

-

I stood there thinking, there had to be a way to change the outcome. There **had** to be a way to save Rei. There was something different now, different from the nightmares and that gave me hope. Minako knew, in the nightmares she didn't. Nobody knew anything in the nightmares, now they did. Even Rei looked like she had finally caught on. Maybe, just maybe everyone would make it out of this alive. Unharmed would be great, but I'd be okay with everyone still breathing and not near death.

I looked around once again, then something caught my eye. Something behind my friends, behind Rei.

"Not this time," I said with more courage than I'd felt in months. I didn't need to use my broach or say the transformation phrase, not this time; I could feel that I had already changed into Sailor Moon. I broke into a run, I wouldn't let them win this time, even if it meant my life for theirs.

Minako looked surprised as she saw me running towards them, rather than towards an enemy that no one could see. If she'd only look over her shoulder… Shouting was out of the question, that would alert the Senshi, but it would also alert the Demon Lady. So I ran towards them as fast as I could. I saw the shadowy hand form out of thin air and head towards the outer senshi, they'd always gotten caught in my nightmares by a shadow they didn't notice. I looked Minako dead in the eyes, then behind Haruka and Michiru. Minako seemed to catch on as she spun around, now as Sailor Venus.

"I don't think so! CRESANT BEAM SMASH!" Venus yelled, spotting the hand hovering near the group.

"What the hell?" Saturn demanded, spinning around.

"Usagi's Demon Lady," Venus replied, then looked at me as I stopped next to her. "She's a shadow?"

"She takes on that form, yes. That's how everyone was caught to begin with. No one pays attention to shadows," I answered, avoiding Sailor Mars' gaze. _Now isn't the time. If we all make it out of this alive…_

"Watch it!" Tuxedo Mask called out, just as I noticed the Shadow's movement. It had started circling us slowly, moving ever so slightly towards Mars.

"No," I whispered softly. _Which weapon was she going to use this time? Which attack? If all the nightmares had been the same, I'd have a better idea on how to fight her now. What was identical in all of them? What was different? Wait! Tuxedo Mask wasn't here! Is that a good thing, or a bad thing? It has to be a good thing, something else she hadn't planned for, she must have known he wasn't in town at the time. Just how long has she been watching me?!_

"So, you're still going to try fighting me." It wasn't a question, I knew that.

"Yeah," I replied. _She's up to something…_

"But you already know how this ends, you've seen it every night for the last five months. You can't change the outcome, you know this already too. So why try?" the Demon Lady asked, still in her shadowy form.

"Because I won't let it end like that. I won't let you hurt them."

"Oh how righteous of you," the shadow's tone mocking. "So, how do you plan on stopping me?"

"Any way I can," I said, just before charging forward as she changed into her human looking form, surprise written on that parchment white face.

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**Yeah, I know it's short. Short for something from me anyway (OMG it's shorter than the prologue!!!), but like I said, better than nothing, right? Hope you liked it (as short as it may be... lol). Please review. Any thoughts on this, send those too. I could use your thoughts, seeing as how I've lost my own. lol**


	10. Won't Back Down

**Yep, another chapter. An nope, still don't own them. **

**...Damn.**

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She recovered quickly enough, too quick in my opinion. _I just barely surprised her, she must have anticipated me charging at her. How though? No one else saw it coming, how did she see it? She's so up to something, I just have to figure out what it is. _I spun around, facing her once again. She had side stepped me, causing me to almost run into the tree that had been behind her. She now stood between me and my friends, and it hit me that she was between us in more ways than one.

"Oh really?" she asked, one thin black eyebrow raising slightly. "I would love to see you try to stop me."

"I'll find a way, I promise you that," I said loudly. Funny, I sounded more confident than I felt. I dared to glance over the Demon's shoulder, at my friends. All the senshi were circled around Sailor Mars, guarding her. That had to have been on Venus' command because Rei didn't look to happy with the situation, though that could have been because I had lied to her and now she knew it. _I'm sorry Rei, I'll make it up to you somehow, assuming I can beat her…_

"Well, you said before you wanted me out of the way. Why? What am I in the way of? What is it you can't do until you get rid of me?" I asked, trying to buy a little time. I needed a plan, and fast.

"Didn't I also tell you that the more you know, the sooner you die? Are you ready to die, Serenity?" the Demon Lady questioned, an evil grin forming on her face. I saw Jupiter and Uranus's faces change from anger to shock when the Demon Lady used my lunarian name.

I rolled my eyes out of annoyance. "Got a name at least?" I questioned.

"Why? Tired of referring to me as 'The Demon Lady'?" she questioned at first, then continued. "That I see no harm in giving you."

"Okay then," I said then waited a moment. "Well?" I asked once I grew tired of waiting for her to respond.

She chuckled slightly, sending chills down my spine. "Lillith." The name only made me more nervous, but I couldn't say why. _Wait, how did she know that? Oh shit! There's no way, she can't possibly be-!_

"Reading your mind?" Lillith finished my thought smugly, her red eyes were practically glowing. "You look surprised, Serenity," she sneered.

"Uh… Yeah, just a little…" I admitted, sounding stupid even to myself. _Now what?_

"You could just give up, you can't win," Lillith answered my unspoken question. I was running out of time, out of ideas. I had to do something, something she wasn't expecting, something she couldn't anticipate. But how do you achieve that when your enemy can read your mind? 'Don't think… Just act. Follow your heart once again, it never let you fail before, did it?'

_What the?!_ I looked around, knowing that thought wasn't mine, nor was it from Lillith, so who…? I noticed Minako watching me intently, she knew something, something I should know. I nodded slightly at her, causing her to give a small smile in return. It had been Minako that sent the thought, have to ask her how she did that later. Don't think, just act. Clear my mind completely.

"What are you doing?" Lillith questioned, sounding slightly bothered now. The faintest flicker of concern showed in her eyes, but only for an instant. That small thing let me know I was doing something right. This just might work, if I can keep it up that is.

"What, you mean you don't know?" I questioned innocently, a smile in place. "The mind reader can't read my mind anymore?"

"You're up to something," Lillith said.

"So are you," I replied in the same tone.

Lillith stood there watching me for a moment, then glanced over her shoulder at the senshi, none of them had moved from their spots. Rei looked annoyed now, if not seriously pissed off. Mercury was typing away furiously on her mini computer, Jupiter and Uranus were talking back and forth heatedly. Tuxedo Mask and Neptune kept their guards up, their ever watchful eyes scanning everything within sight. Venus never took her eyes off me, giving me any support I may need, I'd have to thank her for that. Her confidence in me was what gave me the courage to do what I really feared doing because of the nightmare I'd had while staying at her house.

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Sailor Moon just stood there, pretty much having a staring contest with the demon named Lillith. The second and a half that Lillith spared to looked behind her at the princess' friends was all it took for all hell to break loose. Within that second and a half, Sailor Moon transformed once again, this time to Princess Serenity, but not her usual form. She looked the same way she had while fighting Galaxia, those white wings spreading out behind her as she charged with her sword in hand.

Lillith hadn't sensed this attack like she had Serenity's earlier one. She didn't have time to dodge and just barely moved in time. Her arm wasn't as fast as the rest of her body though as Serenity's sword slashed through the flesh of her arm. Lillith clutched her arm, blood pouring toward the ground. She glared at the princess now, determined to kill her then and there.

"You'll pay for that, Princess," Lillith promised.

"Hmm, if you say so," Serenity said, the kind gentle hearted girl the senshi knew wasn't in front of them at the moment. The blonde before them was the fighter, the warrior who was more than determined to fight so her friends didn't have to. The princess who refused to lose a friend because someone had picked a fight with _her_. All traces of Usagi were gone at the moment. "But as you said just a few minutes ago, I would _love_ to see you try."

Lillith stood there, completely stunned. How had this girl managed to turn the tables so fast? She'd been scared of her own shadow for a while there, scared of sleeping, of transforming into this form she now wore with confidence. She'd been afraid of transforming into anything other than Sailor Moon because of how she'd seen Sailor Mars die in her nightmares, yet she looked far from scared now. Lillith tried reading her mind once again, to get her advantage back before learning that Serenity had found a way around her powers. She might be harder to beat than she'd originally thought. Unless she went for Sailor Mars now instead of later. She'd have to change her plans slightly to throw the moon princess off again.

Serenity stood there motionless, just watching Lillith. She knew Lillith was up to something, she could see it on her face. No doubt trying to get the upper hand once again. Serenity wouldn't have any of that though.

"Do you not know how to fight an opponent without knowing what they're going to do first?" Serenity questioned. "Are you mad that you can't read my mind right now? Or that I know what you're getting ready to try?" Serenity paused there, watching the surprise flash across Lillith's face. "Yes, I know you want to go after her now. You want to go ahead and kill her and not mess with the others right now. It's not going to work. They won't let you get anywhere near her. _**I**_ won't let you get near her."

"So what, _you_ can read minds now?" Lillith demanded angrily.

"No, but someone else can," she said simply and left it at that.

Lillith didn't think about what she was doing before she did it. She spun around and glared at the senshi that had been behind her, her back now to Serenity. She hadn't thought that turning her back on the moon princess might be a mistake.

Serenity chose that very same moment to charge forward again, this time slicing Lillith's side open. Lillith hissed angrily as she spun back to face Serenity. "To hell with all of them, I'm gonna kill you!" she screamed. After her declaration, she rushed towards Serenity, who had fallen back after her attack. She pulled a pitch black sword out of the shadows right as she came down on Serenity.

Serenity noticed the sword at the last second, dropped her attack so she could block the one directed at her. She heard someone yell, but couldn't make out who it was, or what was said. She didn't really care right now either, as long as they were all okay, that's all that mattered.

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"We have to do something! I won't just stand here and watch her fight. She doesn't have all her strength back yet, you said so yourself!" Sailor Uranus argued.

"We can't just rush in to help her though, we'll only get in the way unless we have a plan first," Mercury stated, still punching at the buttons on her computer.

"Something's not right," Mars whispered, speaking up for the first time since Minako had tried to pull her away from the area.

Neptune immediately turned to Sailor Mars. "What do you mean? What's wrong?" she demanded.

"I'm not sure…" Mars trailed off, watching the blonde in the distance. "I just… I can feel it, something just isn't right."

"She's hiding her fears," Sailor Venus said quietly.

"How do you know that?" Tuxedo asked, walking up next to the blonde.

"Because I told her to," she admitted sadly.

"How'd you do that?!" Mercury asked incredulously.

"I'm not sure. I'm kinda surprised that she heard me, I didn't plan for her to hear me, it just happened," Venus tried to explain while watching her princess. She could feel the fear coming from her friends, more so from Rei than the others. After telling Usagi to not think, just act, she hadn't been able to pick up anything from her. Everything she _had_ felt just vanished, that worried her a little. Usagi could never let go of her feelings, no matter what they were. She couldn't possible let them go now, there was just no way. She had to be suppressing them somehow. What would happen when she couldn't hold them down any longer?

"We have to think of something fast. We need to help her find a weakness, any weakness that Lillith may have. If we don't, she's not going to win this."

"What makes you say that?" Uranus asked, sounding slightly worried now as she watched Serenity swinging her sword.

"Watch her movements. They aren't focused, no where near focused. She's still distracted, I'm just glad Lillith hasn't figured that much out yet. There's something we don't-" Sailor Venus stopped abruptly, thinking once more about what Usagi was going to say before she broke down the day before. _'Every time I close my eyes for too long, I see all the senshi getting hurt, because of me. That woman saves __**her**__ for last, then kills her right in front of me. It's a little different every time, the method. At your house they… They… Oh Kami, she's going to die because of me!'_ Why would she be afraid of transforming though? The look on Usagi's face that day, while she tried to explain would forever be imprinted on Minako's mind. Something in the nightmare, the way Rei was killed… What the hell happened? '_…then kills her right in front of me. It's a little different every time, the method. At your house they… They… Oh Kami…' _

"Oh my god!" Venus yelled suddenly, startling those around her. _That bitch used Usagi's own weapons against her! She killed Rei in her dreams with Usagi's weapons! No wonder she wouldn't talk!_ "Usagi!!!"

"Venus, what is it? What's wrong?" Tuxedo Mask questioned, clearly stunned by the sudden enraged outburst from the normally bubbly senshi. Sailor Venus ignored the question, all thoughts focused on her princess. "Venus? … Minako?!"

"Quiet!" she demanded at once. "I have to concentrate."

_Usagi? What did she use in the nightmare at my house?_

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_What?! You're asking me this now?!_ I demanded of my friend, sparing a glance at the senshi. Tuxedo Mask looked fairly annoyed with Sailor Venus at the moment while the others simply looked stunned.

'Yes, what did she use?' Venus questioned again.

_This sword…_ I replied softly. _The other one you saw, was my scepter. Do we have a plan yet?_ I wouldn't be able to keep this up much longer. I was worn out, was well beyond my limits and I knew it. I've got to do something, there has to be something.

I knocked Lillith down once again, then scanned the area quickly. There was something I was missing, I could feel it. Watch it be something so obvious that they'll tease me later for not seeing it sooner. I have to find it! Lillith jumped back up and started swinging her sword around again. Her movements were even less controlled than my own now, _she must be getting pissed._

I cast another glance at my friends, silently pleading for help. If this didn't end soon, it wouldn't end well… For any of us.

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**Alright, so here's chapter 10. Am I starting to bug anyone yet with these cliffies? lol. As always, please review! I love hearing what you all think about these stories of mine. Till next time.**


	11. Just a shadow? Rei!

**Still don't own the characters, bummer. **

**So, another update, yay! lol. Yes, it's another short one, but an update none the less! Besides, I wanted to put something up before Thanksgiving otherwise it wouldn't happen for at least another couple weeks and for those of you who check my profile, I promised it'd be up within the next week. Now, on with the story!**

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Minako gave her princess an apologetic look. They had no plan, they weren't even close to having a plan. They couldn't anticipate Lillith's movements, nor Serenity's for that matter. There was nothing the senshi could do but make sure Rei didn't get killed, keep Rei safe like Usagi had been trying to do all along.

Minako couldn't help but see the irony in the situation. They'd always told Usagi to tell them when something was wrong so that they could help her. She finally told them what was wrong and they _couldn't_ help her. They couldn't do a damned thing and they all knew it.

Ami refused to accept this and continued to punch the keys on her computer furiously. Makoto and Haruka continued to talk battle tactics with each other, only managing to poke holes in each scenario and angering themselves with their current dilemma. Mamoru and Michiru let everyone else try to come up with the plans to help their princess, their main focus was Rei and making sure she stayed safe. Minako did the only thing she could think of at the moment, concentrate on Usagi, give her the support to continue until someone thought of something useful.

Rei appeared to be standing in the middle of her friends, lost in her thoughts. That wasn't entirely the case. Rei was thinking, and hard, on what she could do to help Usagi. She could see Usagi's strength waning and knew she wasn't going to last much longer. Not nearly as long as the others thought she would. She was already on the verge of collapsing. So Rei continued to watch silently. She noticed that even with the amount of blood, Lillith didn't appear to be in pain, just pissed off. She wasn't slowing down in her attacks either, but she should be. Something just didn't add up and Rei could only hope she'd figure it out before it was too late.

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I glanced at my friends as often as I could without endangering myself more. Everyone was focused on something, their own plans for helping, except Sailor Mars. That surprised me slightly. She was scanning the area, seemingly looking for something that wasn't there. Or was it?

She finally looked my way for a moment, then looked towards the top of a near by tree, then at me once more. I wanted to ask her what she wanted me to do, but I couldn't risk alerting Lillith to anything, not when she was so focused on me as it was. I blocked another attack with my sword and rolled across the dirt and leaves, then jumped to my feet. I had to stay standing, just had to.

I spared another glance toward Rei. She repeated her earlier gesture, look at me, the tree, then me again. Then she looked at Lillith, then the tree. _What the hell? _I was too curious now to ignore the gesture, and looked up at the tree Rei kept watching. I was so stunned at what I saw that I almost didn't block Lillith's next attack in time. I had just barely blocked her sword from slashing my leg wide open, but not quick enough to prevent her from tearing my dress down the side. _All this time, she's just been playing with me! _

'You can't fight a shadow, you have to fight the shadow's owner to really cause any damage. Fighting the shadow is like trying to grab water, you can touch it, but nothing more.' I heard Rei thinking. I watched the shadow before me for any sign that she'd heard Rei's thoughts. Nothing, good. I glanced at Rei one last time, sending a thought her way.

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'Get her down here for me?' Rei heard Usagi ask. Mars just barely nodded her reply to her weary princess before turning her attention back to the tree a few yards away from Usagi. Slowly, she took her fighting stance.

"What are you doing, Mars?" Sailor Neptune questioned, gaining the attention of everyone around her. Uranus and Jupiter both raised a brow at Mars, but said nothing.

"Helping," was Rei's short and simple reply. "Mars Flame Sniper!" she cried, releasing a flaming arrow. The moon princess immediately ran to her left to avoid the falling tree, then resumed her fighting stance as well.

"Thanks Mars," the princess called out. Mars only nodded.

"What just happened?" Venus questioned, eyeing the fire senshi.

"She wasn't fighting the real Lillith. She was hiding in that damn tree the whole time, watching, fighting through her shadow. Now the odds are even," she answered. "Now her attacks will actually have some effect on that bitch."

"That means…" Mercury trailed off, typing away on her computer again, leaving the remaining senshi hanging. Venus simply shrugged, then turned her attention back to their princess. She seemed to have regained some energy now that her battle wasn't completely hopeless. After a moment, Minako realized she could sense something in Usagi again. She was pissed off now, more pissed off than any of them had ever witnessed before.

"Venus, chain her to a tree. We need to tie her down for a minute so we can all attack her," Mercury stated, just barely cutting through Minako's thoughts.

"Huh? Right," Venus replied.

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"Venus Love Chain Encircle!" I barely heard Venus cry out through my growing anger. I took a step back out of pure reflex before I'd noticed what had happened. Mars must have filled them in once I started fighting again because they were all running towards me now. I looked at Lillith to see what Venus had done, she was tied to a nearby tree, and she looked pissed. Almost as furious as I felt myself. I wanted so bad to give her a good hard punch in the face, to erase the smug look she'd worn earlier, that I could still see in her eyes. I didn't just want to hurt her, I wanted to kill her and I was too angry to realize that the thought should have startled me. The look in her eyes had me too distracted to realize that my friends were talking, whether to me or to each other, I couldn't be certain. She was planning something, I could feel it. She wasn't nearly as pissed off as she should have been and that completely baffled me.

I spared a glance at my friends who were now standing around me, still talking, but the words didn't reach my ears. I then noticed that everyone was moving in slow motion, as though time itself had slowed down to watch. _I don't understand, what's going on?_

'_Be ready, she's not done just yet. She's got one more attack up her sleeve.'_

_Who the hell is this?!_ I demanded upon hearing a new voice in my mind.

'_Watch her movements closely, Serenity. She's going to try for Rei now that she's in range, don't drop your guard now.'_

_Setsuna?_ I questioned, eyes glued to Lillith's movements now. I had just barely heard the confirmation from Setsuna when I noticed Lillith's evil grin returning, then felt the air around me start moving of its own accord.

"No," I stated as time resumed it's normal speed once more.

"What is it?" I heard Venus question, confusion clear on her face. I didn't answer her, I continued to watch Lillith. She wasn't going to win this one, or in the very least, not the way she'd planned.

I studied her for a moment before realizing exactly what she was doing. Her shadow had returned, but just barely, and had gone for my sword. I stood my ground, determined to protect Rei at all costs. _I will NOT let her die today!_ Within seconds, my sword was torn from my hands and was zooming through the air. It's target was only a few yards away from Lillith and myself, Rei. I heard the senshi yelling as Rei paled instantly, eyes on my sword that was quickly closing in on her; Rei was rooted to the spot by none other than Lillith's shadow.

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**End Chapter. Yes, I know, I'm an evil little shit. It makes for an interesting time, for me anyway. Next chapter WILL be up before Christmas, even if it kills me! (and it very well might, if my readers don't get me first, lol) Happy holidays everyone!**

**Moonlight.  
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	12. It's Not Over Yet

**Ha! A double update! Got this and 'The Heart of Wildfire' updated today. So, read on readers!**

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"Usagi no!!!!" someone screamed, voice full of terror. I barely heard it though, my mind was trying desperately to block everything out. Block out the fear, the weariness, the pain… The only thing it wasn't trying to block out was the pure rage I was feeling. There was nothing else, just rage, and I knew just what to do with it.

I slowly opened my eyes to see Lillith slumped before me, worn down but very pissed off. Her eyes radiating anger like a lamp does heat. I didn't care. The only thing I cared about was that that… _monster_ tried using my sword, _**my sword**_, to kill Rei, that was the only mistake I'd let her live to make.

I got to my feet slowly, watching her every move with unblinking eyes, waiting to see what she'd do now. I was vaguely aware of feeling slightly dizzy for a moment, but the reason for it didn't cross my mind. As long as I was still standing and between her and my friends, I didn't care what the reason was. _Just stay standing._

Lillith's glare should have been deadly, those blood red eyes trying to pierce through the haze surrounding my mind. She couldn't find any thoughts in my mind any better than I could, and that pleased me.

"Damn you, just what are you up to?" Lillith yelled, trying to get back on her feet, failing as she was still 'chained' to the tree behind her. She lacked the strength to switch forms to escape her bindings.

"I want answers," I stated simply, sword still raised and ready to attack.

"You really do want to die, don't you?" Lillith questioned. "Do your friends know just how close you've come in the past? Or that the thought never left you mind entirely?"

"Usagi…" Tuxedo Mask started.

"And it was at this very pier that you were willing to take your own life, funny this battle would take place here as well," Lillith laughed a laugh so hollow it echoed in the silence.

"What the hell, Usagi?!" Sailor Mars demanded, I ignored her and everyone else. I wanted my answers first, they can wait a few more minutes.

"Answer the question, Lillith. What am I in the way of? What is it you can't accomplish until I'm dead?" I asked again, slowly stepping forward, sword aimed at her throat.

"Think back, Serenity. Try a few thousand years…" she sneered.

"So it was you, that's why your name sounded so damn familiar," I replied, thinking for a moment. "That doesn't answer my question though, just tells me more of who you are. Answer the question." Another step forward.

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Serenity took another step forward, sword ready to take Lillith down. Venus couldn't understand why Usagi was waiting, why draw it out? There was something bigger going on that they were unaware of and she knew this, she just wished she knew what that was. Their blonde princess didn't act anything like they were used to, something was different, it was almost as if she'd matured too fast… So she waited. Lillith's declaration on Usagi's wish to die and Mamoru's expression left a lot of questions in Minako's mind, questions she wasn't sure she was ready to ask. The look on Mamoru's face was enough to tell Minako that Usagi had in fact tried this. Then she remembered when she told Mamoru that she'd found Usagi on this pier, how panicked he sounded when he'd demanded to speak with Usagi. Why hadn't they seen it? Why hadn't _she_ seen it?

The moon princess had said something to Lillith again, Rei realized when she'd taken another step forward. Rei had been too distracted by Lillith's comment and Mercury and Neptune's side conversation to pay too much attention to anything else. Rei had a bad feeling though, a really bad feeling. She saw what Mercury had scanned into her computer, knew exactly what she and Neptune were talking about, but they weren't anywhere _near_ worried enough. Usagi was bleeding, and badly; She'd grown extremely pale in the past few minutes and Rei knew the reason why she hadn't charged Lillith yet. She didn't have the strength to do so, and Rei couldn't think of anything to do to help. When Usagi was determined to do something, they couldn't talk her out of it, and right now she was determined to get some answers.

"Because they can't do anything with you in control here," Lillith's voice broke through her thoughts.

"Now we're getting somewhere," Serenity stated, lowering her sword. Rei could see that the tip was now coated red, did she really just… "Who are 'they'?"

"_They_ would be my bosses, the ones who want you dead and once they find out what I've told you, _they_ will be the ones to come kill you! I'm just the… How should I put this? The messenger?" Lillith laughed once again, this time it made the hair on the back of Rei's neck stand on end. _Just what the Hell is going on here? Why do they need Usagi dead? Why does everyone want her dead?!_

"Interesting," Serenity said quietly, her eyes never leaving Lillith's form. "If they're going to kill me anyway, you may as well tell me what they want to do that they can't do while I'm here."

Lillith remained silent for a moment, then looked up, locking eyes with Serenity. "As long as you are here and in possession of the silver crystal, they can't pass their forces through the gate. They're going to take over this planet and _you_ are the only one standing in their way. You and that damn stone of yours. They'll get you though, they're strong. Stronger than you can imagine. Just wait, just you wait. They'll be able to turn your deepest, darkest fears against you, bring them to life!" she reeled in awe. "They'll kill you, and there's nothing you'll be able to do to stop them!" Lillith stopped there and just started laughing hysterically.

"Then why send you first?" Serenity asked warily, her anger finally ebbing.

"To test you, see what you can do, what you're willing to do. They've been watching, this whole time!" she replied between her laughter, making Serenity shudder. Suddenly her laughter died and she spoke once more before vanishing in a blood red poof of smoke, "You're dead, Serenity."

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**Yes, another cliffie! Oh how I love them. lol. Hopefully it doesn't take me ages to update again. As always, please review. Laters.**


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